The 57th Hunger Games
by leenylu
Summary: 24 tributes, 24 perspectives, 24 stories to tell. Let the 57th annual hunger games begin.
1. The Reapings

_**(A/N): Hello! Welcome to my first fanfiction! I started writing this around a year ago and finally decided to start posting it. This story includes the point of view of all 24 tributes, but unlike a lot of stories like this there will only be 6 chapters about this length before the actual games start, with 4 new tributes per chapter, instead of the usual 12 reaping chapters and then a bunch of capitol chapters. Chapter 1 is reapings, chapter 2 is farewells and train rides, chapter 3 is getting settled at the Capitol and chariot rides, chapter 4 is training, chapter 5 is private sessions, and chapter 6 is interviews. It might be a little fast-paced but I wanna get to the actual Games. So yeah, here are Districts 1 and 12 with the reapings! Enjoy :)**_

Destiny Hartman, 16, District 1

"Destiny! Come on! We're late!" Charity calls.

I can't help rolling my eyes. "Shut up, I'm coming!"

I check my reflection one last time. Cherry-red hair slicked back in a perfect ponytail. Black tank top. Jean short-shorts. Check. I slide on some white flip-flops before I thud down the stairs. I'm not volunteering today. No need to look nice. The cameras won't be searching me out until two years from today. I can't wait.

"When are you gonna dye your hair?" I ask my sister for the billionth time, tugging her simple brown locks. I'm sorry, but me, Faith, and Hope all dyed our hair the day we turned twelve, and she's already thirteen.

She rolls her eyes. "Come on," she mumbles, and leads me out the door. Lila's already pulled up in front of our house. She just got her license. I get in front and Charity slides into the back.

"Seriously, though," I continue. "You'd look so cute with purple hair."

"You totally would," Lila agrees.

"No. I get it," I say. "Red is the best color, and it's already taken." I give a dramatic hair flip, my ponytail swishing.

"Pshhh. Obviously green was the best hair color."

I have to laugh at that. I still don't understand what Faith was thinking on that one.

"I don't know," Lila says. "Hope looked pretty cute with that blue."

"Well. Red's still the best." I turn around and look at my sister, picturing different colors on her. "Yep. You should do purple."

She rolls her eyes again. "I'm not _doing_ anything," she says. "I think brown is the best color, actually."

I laugh. Whatever. She'll change her mind eventually.

We reach the square in about twenty minutes. We swing by the stage, and Lila honks the horn. My parents look up from where they're helping set up—they're SUCH people pleasers—and wave. Then we find the parking spot Lila reserved. What, did you really think everyone in the entire district would be able to _walk_ to the square?

Soon Lila and I are crowded in with the other sixteen-year-old girls, Charity far away in her section. I stand on my toes, trying to see the eighteen-year-olds, but I can't see over so many heads, especially with my short height.

"Looking for the volunteers?" Lila asks. Her sister is eighteen, so she tells Lila all about that kind of thing. I nod. She points. "That tall blond. Her name's Crystal something, I think. And I think..." She looks awhile, then points again. "That big guy. With the short dark hair. His name is Tison Maxwell."

I lose interest in the guy fairly quickly. Tall, muscular, but serious-faced. Not particularly good-looking. Typical Career, but more of a District 2 type. I turn back to the girl, Crystal. I notice that no one's talking to her, unlike most volunteers. She glares around, like she looks down on everything and hates us all.

"Annoying, right?" Lila says, seeing me looking. "My sister wanted to volunteer, but the instructor picked Crystal over her. Everyone was really mad. Apparently no one likes her."

I watch her annoying face for a little longer. The more I watch, the less I like her. She's not even pretty. "Ha, maybe I should volunteer just to annoy her."

Lila's face lights up. "Omp, not even kidding, you should! I mean, you're trained enough, right?"

I think about it for a minute. I actually could. Maybe I will. Faith and Hope were both sixteen when they volunteered. Of course, they didn't win, but still. I'm better prepared than them. Everyone says I'm the best in the class. Crystal flips her hair and gives a little eye roll. That does it.

I smirk, thinking of Charity, of my parents—of everyone here, actually—all thinking this is any other reaping. Well, District 1 is about to get a little surprise.

Tison Maxwell, 18, District 1

I tense up as the mayor concludes his speech and the reapings finally begin. The escort pulls out a slip and calls up some thirteen-year-old blond girl. She doesn't look the slightest bit worried. Sure enough, that blond from my academy and some sixteen-year-old redhead race each other up to the stage. The redhead gets there first, and a shrieking battle follows. But according to the escort, "Rules are rules!" Peacekeepers have to drag Crystal off of the stage. She's still screaming. Idiot. Should have thought ahead like me. I camped out here last night, so now I'm right up against the stage. Sure, the instructor declared that I would be this year's volunteer, but that won't stop people from trying to volunteer in my place, like that redhead jus did.

The escort calls a boy's name, but whoever it is doesn't even bother coming forward. I'm already running to the stage, along with two other guys. I get up there way before them, though, so they just turn around, clearly defeated and not wanting to make fools of themselves.

"Well, I'm pleased to announce District 1's tributes, Destiny Hartman and Tison Maxwell!"

I shake the redhead's hand. She grins up at me. It's clear she's dumb, but hey, at least she's pretty.

Ella Smithsonian, 15, District 12

"As always, ladies first."

I can almost literally feel the tension in the air. I find myself briefly wondering what it's like in other districts, where there's not so much fear on days like today. But I quickly focus again as those claws snatch up a slip. It's not gonna be me, it's not gonna be me...

"Ella Smithsonian!"

It's me.

I walk up to the stage in a daze. All I can think is that this can't be real, that I live in the richer area of our district, the village, that I've never taken tesserae, that my name was on four slips out of thousands, that they couldn't possibly have called my name. This isn't real. It wasn't me.

But then I face the massive crowd of sullen faces, and find my family's stricken faces, and I know that it's real. I concentrate on keeping my thoughts numb for now. I can't cry; I can't show fear. I'm already considered an easy target because of my district. I can't afford to look any weaker. But somehow, I know I won't cry. At least not here. In the justice building, my thoughts will probably clear, and then the emotions will hit me, when I have to say my goodbyes. But here, I'll stay strong.

I distantly hear the escort ask for volunteers, but of course there are none. That's it then.

Goodbye, District 12.

Frederik Carter, 15, District 12

Poor Ella. At least she's not crying or throwing up, both of which I've seen a fair amount of times. But Ella keeps a stone-faced expression. I've never seen her in my life, so she must live far away from me, but I can tell she's from the villages, like me. She doesn't have that Seam look to her, like most of the kids who are reaped. Like me, she's got brown hair, brown eyes, and paler skin. Like me, she's fifteen. And judging from her fairly nice dress, her clean appearance, and styled hair, she probably has a decent amount of money like me, too. I wonder if she's ever taken tesserae. I have, when I was younger. But that was when we were in a rough spot. We have more money now. My name's only entered a total of seven times. I watch the sea of kids before me, most of them clearly underfed and poor. I feel bad for them. I can't imagine how scared they must be, having their names entered on so many slips of paper.

I focus again and see that the escort's already back at the microphone, slip in hand.

"Frederik Carter!"

Weirdly, the first thing I think of is what a weird coincidence it was this year, with two less-poor kids being reaped. Then the full reality washes over me and I feel sick. I stagger to the stage. Up close, I see that Ella's shaking, and when I shake her hand, I feel her palm sweating. At least she put on a brave outward appearance. I wonder if I look scared myself. Because believe me, I'm petrified.


	2. Farewells and Train Rides

_**Here's the farewells and train rides of the tributes from 2 and 6! I thought this author's note would be longer but I don't know what else to say. Askmfsodnsfgjnsf bye.**_

Clara James, 17, District 2

I should have known that there wouldn't be any female volunteers this year. Not after what happened to Willa. But still, I was hoping that there would be at least one idiot still willing to throw her life away.

Guess not.

Cassandra, my twenty-one-year-old sister, comes in with my mother. They hold my hands and whisper general words of comfort and advice. I'm grateful for them, though. Then a Peacekeeper tells them that time's up, and they're ushered from the room, quickly muttering their final goodbyes. Then my father comes in. He shuts the door and leans against it, looking me over in that stern way he has. "I told you that you were destined for the Games," he says after a minute. I just nod. It's true—he'd wanted me to volunteer either this year or next year. He'd wanted that for Cassandra, too, but she'd refused. He never openly became angry with her or stopped speaking to her or anything, but it was pretty clear how disappointed he had been. How disappointed he still is.

"You've got the training. You've got the ability to win." He nods and turns to the door. "I'll see you in a few weeks."

That's all true, too. He had both me and Cassandra train at an academy since we were very young. And I was very good, one of the best in the class. So yes, I do believe that I have the ability to win. I just don't really want to. Let some other stuck-up savage from my district fight for all the glory. I'm happy where I am.

But despite all that, it's true. I will be back in a few weeks.

Marius Sweeney, 18, District 2

The massive crowd of "friends" finally leaves, to my relief. Then my family comes in. My two younger brothers give me brief goodbyes, but back away pretty quickly. To them, this is no big deal. They know I'll be back soon. No need for heartfelt goodbyes. My parents take up all of the rest of the time we have, though. They remind me of all my skills, all my weaknesses, how to avoid those weaknesses. Strategy, fighting skills... basically the summary of everything I've learned in the past eighteen years. When a Peacekeeper cracks open the door and says it's time to go, my mom and brothers wave and turn away. My father turns to me one last time, smiling. "You're ready for this. It's finally happening. I'm proud of you, son, I really am." The door closes behind him.

That's it, then. I'm going.

How did I let this happen? I'm going into an arena where I know there will be at least five other strong Careers, not to mention eighteen other kids. Not that I'm scared. Not that I doubt myself. But still. Like I said, those five other Careers will be just as confident as I am. And only one of us actually gets to come out alive. I'm not stupid. I've thought it through. I've watched as dozens of strong, powerful, deadly tributes have gone into the arena one hundred percent confident that they would win, only to be killed. And a lot of them weren't pretty ends, either.

I never wanted this. This is my family's dream, not mine. But now it's really happening. Finally, my dad said. Well, even if I come back here, I'm probably moving into Victor's Village by myself. I'm tired of all these people always following me around and expecting so much of me.

Huh. I've spent my entire life preparing for this. It's only now that I really stop to think about what will happen afterwards, if I win. My entire life has been dedicated to the Games, so once they're over... then what? It seems like my life will be empty. Almost like I will have already served my purpose, and then everyone will be finished with me.

I think I'll actually enjoy that. No more Games, no more hoards of admirers, no more jealous rivals who wish they could volunteer in my place. Just me, free to live out a normal life however I want.

Of course, this is all assuming that I do win. And I'm not there yet. That's one of the last things my parents told me before they left: take nothing for granted.

River Dartmouth, 16, District 6

"River!"

My three-year-old sister Isabelle runs and leaps into my lap, burying her head in my chest. I look up, and my parents' faces are almost enough to cause me to break down. But I can't. I won't let their last memory of me be of me in tears.

Isabelle lifts her head. Her round blue eyes are full of tears. This is the first time I've ever seen her cry. I don't know how much of this she understands, but enough to know that it's bad. Maybe she even understands that she won't see me again.

I wish I could say, no. She _will_ see me again. But deep down I know it's just about impossible. Sure, I'm pretty strong, and maybe I can even get sponsors. Girls seem to chase me down a lot. Apparently, with my bright blue eyes and spiked black hair, I'm a cutie. So I guess it's not impossible. But it's very, very unlikely. And I can't lie to myself.

"Are you gonna come back?" Isabelle asks me.

I can't lie to her, either. "I don't know," I say. "But I promise I'll try."

She nods sadly. "Okay," she whispers. I stroke her hair as she leans against me again.

Our time is up too soon. I look into Isabelle's eyes. "I love you," I say. "Remember that. Okay?"

She nods solemnly.

My family is taken away from me. Then I'm ushered onto a train, where I collapse onto the first couch I see, the emotions finally washing over me.

I... There are no words for this.

Adrielle Harper, 14, District 6

I smile and wave at District 6 until it's well out of sight, and the scenery outside turns to endless fields of green grass.

"It's so pretty," I say. "Don't you think?" I turn to my district partner. He's slumped on the couch. When he looks up at my words, I can see tears in his eyes. "Oh." I say quickly. "Sorry."

He shakes his head. "No, it's alright," he says. "I'm just... you know."

I nod. "I miss my family too."

He frowns. "You don't seem too upset. I thought a young girl like you would be... I don't know, a mess. How can you be smiling?"

I shrug. "Yeah. I just kinda..." I take a deep breath. "I have to pretty much accept the fact that I won't be coming back. But I'll still get the chance to spend a week in the Capitol, which looks so cool, and I'll get a chance to be on tv, which doesn't happen to a lot of people. If this is...the end, then I want to make the most of it."

River raises his eyebrows. "Huh. Wish I could think like that."

"How are you thinking?"

He sighs. "I'm thinking about how to win, and the thought of not winning just makes me sad, not happy or appreciative like you, I guess."

"Yeah. I guess it's a life-long habit. I've pretty much always been an optimist. I like to make the most of everything."

He nods. "It's a good way to live."

I grin. "Thanks. That means a lot, actually."

"Really? Why?"

"I just... I've had a lot of people tell me I'm ridiculous, that I need to be more realistic, my head is stuck in the clouds, that kind of stuff. They don't get why I'd rather be happy all the time. But now, my life is probably going to be cut short, so I'm looking back, and I'm proud. I think I've made the most of the life I've had so far."

He raises his eyebrows. "Wow. How old are you again? Fourteen?" I nod. "That's amazing. I'm jealous of you."

I smile. "It's not too late. You could start living like that right now."

He nods thoughtfully. "I think I will." He looks up. "If you do win, your talent should be motivational speaking or something like that."

I smile. "I actually did always want to be a therapist."

He nods. "Panem knows we need it with all the morphlings in our district."

I laugh. I like this guy. He's easy to talk to. Plus, he doesn't look down on me even though he's older.

We're interrupted by our escort, who ushers us into a beautiful dining room with a gorgeous white table piled high with by far the most amazing food I've ever seen.

I smile at River, who looks just as shocked as I am. "This is exactly what I was talking about," I say. "I don't know about you, but I think I'll at least be enjoying this."


	3. Chariot Rides

**_Wow there have been a lot more views/visitors on this so far than I was expecting so even if you don't read it all the way to the end, thanks for at least checking out my story! Here's Districts 9 and 11 with watching the reapings and then chariot rides._**

Emmanuel Hester, 15, District 9

I lean back in my chair, stuffed. Our escort checks her watch, squeals, and leaps out of her chair.

"Up, up, up, everybody!" she cries. "The reapings are on!"

She bustles us into a living room, with incredibly soft and comfortable couches. I sit down between the escort and my district partner, Sierra. The escort presses a button on a little plastic box, and the tv across the room flicks on. I'll never get used to the Capitol's technology.

We're just in time. We watch the seal of Panem disappear as the lights come up on a bright studio.

"Good evening, Panem! This is Cynthia Sunshine, here with Caesar Flickerman, and we're about to show you this year's tributes for the 57th annual Hunger Games!" I think she's literally bouncing up and down in her seat. "This is the first time you will get to see these 24 kids," she says. "So pay close attention!" She turns to the man next to her. "I don't know about you, Caesar, but I sure am excited!"

Caesar smiles. "As am I, Cynthia!" He smiles, turning to the camera. "But I certainly don't think we should make anyone wait a moment longer! So without further ado, let's see this year's tributes!" Cynthia claps her hands excitedly before the studio disappears and is replaced by an image of a beautiful stage. I've seen this stage on tv before. It's the reaping stage in the square of District 1. Even their stage is nicer than ours. In the crowd, you can see everyone smiling and laughing. They all look so nice and well-dressed, and no one looks the slightest bit scared. It couldn't be more different from our district. It must be nice, knowing that someone will always volunteer, never having to worry about being forced into the Games. Soon, a small blond girl is reaped, and she probably wouldn't stand a chance, but she doesn't look scared at all. Sure enough, two girls race each other to the stage. A little screeching match follows, before the taller one is dragged off the stage, leaving a shorter girl with cherry-red hair and big, round, brown eyes. She smiles at the crowd, and searches out the cameras. One zooms in, and she grins right at it. It's like she's looking right at me. I'm already terrified.

My terror is heightened as a huge, muscular guy with short dark hair marches onto the stage. He doesn't smile, just glares. If I run into him, I'll probably run off the nearest cliff just so I don't have to face him.

It doesn't get much better from there. I go between fearing the tributes that look stronger than me and feeling bad for the ones that look weaker. Surprisingly, no girls volunteer from District 2.

"It's because of that girl from last year," Sierra says. "Remember?"

I nod. That does sound familiar. Willa, I think was her name. She sacrificed herself to save her ally and was tortured to death or something. I heard afterwards that she was really admired back in her district. No one volunteered after her out of respect, I guess.

The girl who is reaped is intimidating nevertheless. She's tall and thin, with long, wavy, red hair, and dark, fierce eyes. I can already tell just from the way she carries herself to the stage that she moves easily and with grace. She's probably really agile. She could probably wield any weapon easily. She could probably rip my head off, no problem.

The boy volunteers, to much whooping and cheering from the crowd. "Ooh, he's keee-yoot!" the escort says. I'm sure he has skill, and if a lot of people agree with the escort, he'll have quite a few sponsors, too.

District 3's a little more comforting, but I end up feeling sad instead. The girl is fourteen and the boy is only twelve. The boy is strongly built, but his scared expression isn't helping him. And the girl isn't pretty enough to be... pretty, but she doesn't look young enough to get support for being just a cute little girl. So not only are they young, but they probably won't get a lot of sponsors either.

District 4 sends more typical careers. Awesome. They both have blond hair and brown eyes, but the similarities pretty much end there. The girl flips her hair so it catches the sunlight and beams down at her adoring district, smiling and waving, while the boy, who must be at least a foot taller, stands stock-still, staring straight ahead. Although, according to my escort, they both make up "quite the good-looking pair!"

The District 5 tributes are pretty similar to Sierra and me. They're a similar age to us, with fairly similar builds. Like Sierra, the girl's fairly pretty, with auburn hair and chocolate-brown eyes. The boy's shaggy brown hair rustles in the wind, his blue eyes serious.

District 6 is another one that makes me sad. The girl is only fourteen. Sierra gives a little gasp.

I turn. "What?"

She watches the screen sadly. "She looks kinda like my sister. Same brown hair and eyes and they're the same age... Different attitude, though."

I watch as the girl gives a brave smile at the cameras. I have to respect her for not breaking down.

The boy is sixteen. Sierra gives a little gasp again. I turn to her, and her face goes a little pink. "I... he's cute," she mumbles. I look at the boy. He's taller, fairly muscular, with paler skin, spiked black hair, and pale blue eyes. Great. Another sponsor hog.

But what really makes this reaping a sad one is the wail that breaks out from the back of the crowd. The cameras find a small girl who can only be this boy's little sister. She has the exact same hair, skin, and eyes. She can't be more than three or four. He mother clutches the girl as she leans out, reaching for her brother. He looks at her sadly, as if he desperately wants to reach back, but of course he can't.

The escort makes a little swooning noise. I look over and see that she looks like she might faint. An Avox appears with a glass of water, and she takes it gratefully. Okay, so District 6 has probably already stolen everyone's hearts.

District 7 seems a little more forgettable. The girl is eighteen, with long, black hair, dark eyes, and pale skin. She looks out with a blank expression. The boy is seventeen, with chestnut hair and brown eyes. He seems strong, probably from working with lumber. But still, nothing special.

The guy from 8 is huge. His muscles seem to ripple as he stands on the stage, looking furious. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets in with the Careers. Next to him, the girl looks ridiculous. I think she's seventeen, but she looks terrified.

Then our district. I've kinda been dreading this one. First Sierra is called, and like a lot of tributes, she gives a weak attempt at keeping her face blank, but you can clearly see the fear underneath.

I watch myself slowly climb to the stage, and I come across similarly. Shoot. I see the escort look between the two of us, taking in our same tan skin, blond hair, and blue eyes. She asks if we're "like related or something?" Sierra wordlessly shakes her head. It's true. I barely know her. A lot of us have tanner skin and lighter hair from being out in the sunny fields so much.

Overall, I think we're fairly forgettable.

To make matters worse, we're sandwiched between District 8, with that huge guy, and District 10, which is really impressive too. The girl's wavy auburn hair flashes in the sun as she sneers at the camera. The boy doesn't look scared at all. Although he's not quite as big as the guys from 1 and 8, he's still another muscular one.

11 and 12 are more forgettable. 11's kids both look small, scared, and underfed. And the only interesting thing about the kids from 12 is that neither of them have that olive-skinned, grey-eyed look that you normally see from 12.

Cynthia and Caesar come back on, exchange a few basic words about how excited they are and how great the tributes are, and wrap up, finishing, of course, with Cynthia wishing that the odds are ever in our favor.

But I think the odds are most certainly not in our favor.

Sierra Reilly, 16, District 9

The tv goes off. I let out a huff of air. So many kids. And so many of them look so strong, too. And even the meaner-looking ones... I don't think I would want to kill any of them, even if I were able to. That's my problem. I'm not even that scared about death for some reason. But I am scared to see innocent kids die, and if I ever had to kill someone... I don't know what I would do afterwards. I would probably go crazy from the guilt.

The people in the room begin to disperse, the escort encouraging us to rest up, because tomorrow is a "big, big day!" Yeah, no kidding. Every single day from now until the day the victor is crowned is going to be a big, big day.

Soon, everyone's left the room except for me, Emmanuel, and one previous victor. She beckons us over.

"Alright. Strategizing needs to start now. Even on the chariots tomorrow, you need to know what you're doing." We nod. She pauses. "Okay. So I'm gonna be perfectly honest. Neither of you stands out too much if we're talking about skill or attitude." I hate to admit it, but she's right. "But, I think the one thing that could make you two memorable is the fact that you look so similar. If we present you as a... a matched set, that might make each of you more recognizable. What do you think?" Emmanuel nods, and after a second, I do too. It's not like I can think of anything better.

"Good," she continues. "Alright. I'll contact your stylists tonight and tell them to make sure you two look as similar as possible. And have similar attitudes on the chariot as well. I'll leave that up to you, whether you want to smile and wave, or be serious, or whatever. Alright?" We nod again. "Okay. I hate to admit it, but your escort's right about getting some rest. And about tomorrow being an important day. So go to bed."

Soon I'm in my room, clean from a shower, and more comfortable than I think I've ever been in my life. I can't help it. Soon I'm fast asleep.

Simon Rolofan, 15, District 11

I squint around the room. I can only see blurred colors and shapes. They took my glasses a few minutes ago, and I want them back! I'm at enough of a disadvantage already, and I can't afford to lose my glasses, too. If I can't see in the arena, I won't make it five minutes.

The door swings open, and a figure comes into the room. I think it's a woman, judging the click-clack of her (or his?) shoes.

"Hello!" Her high-pitched, chipper voice confirms that she's a girl. "I'm your doctor. I'm going to help you out." Huh? What do I need helping out with? I'm pretty sure I'm not sick or anything. "Hold still, now!" she chirps. As if I have a choice. I'm strapped down. I squint as she pulls out something long, thin, and silver. Is that...?

Yep. It's a syringe. I feel a tiny pinch in my arm just before I black out.

I don't know how long it is until I wake up. When I do, I blink, and slowly open my eyes. I quickly shut them again. Everything is too bright. "Simon?" the same squeaky voice greets me. "Are you awake?" I make a little grunting noise. I'm still a little out of it from being knocked out. "Great!" she says. "Everything probably looks a little bright right now, but that'll fix right up within half an hour. I'm sending in your prep team now. If your eyes are still giving you trouble after an hour, have them call me back, okay?" I grunt again. "Great! Bye-bye now!" I hear some quick little click-clacks before the door shuts again. I'm tired. My head hurts. I want to take a long nap.

No such luck. I hear the door burst open less than a minute later, and then I'm surrounded by excited chatter, footsteps, clicking as they remove the bonds strapping me down, and other clanking noise as my prep team sets everything up. Then I'm being waxed, shaved, scrubbed, clipped, and all sorts of other beauty-words. Around half an hour later, I risk cracking my eyes open again, and it seems my doctor was right; the world has returned to its normal brightness. The prep team gasps in happiness. "Look at those eyes!" a green and blue woman says.

"We can finally see your face!" A spiky man says.

"How's your vision?" asks a black-and-white man.

I blink a few times and look around. "It's... perfect." I lift a hand to my face. But my glasses are gone.

The spiky man smiles, seeing my confusion. "The doctor did a little operation on your eyes for you. Now those pesky glasses won't be in your way in the arena!"

I nod. I'm still shocked. I had no idea the Capitol was capable of things like that.

The prep team continues prepping for a while, and then finally holds a mirror in front of my face. I'm surprised again. Not only are my glasses gone, but my face is scrubbed clean, my hair brushed and gelled, and a small amount of makeup has been brushed onto my face. I'm almost unrecognizable.

"Do you like it?" The earthy woman asks eagerly.

"Yes." The prep team squeals happily, thanks me, and then scuttles out of the room.

My stylist comes in a few minutes later with my costume. I can't say I'm not a little disappointed. It's just a typical farmer suit. Oh well. I still look much nicer than I ever did back home. She leads me out to the area where the chariots and other tributes are lined up. Here we go.

May Avriel, 14, District 11

Farmers. Yep. Straw hats, plaid shirts, jean overalls, boots. Not even a farm-like dress? Something? Come on!

Oh well. I still look prettier than I ever have. I've never worn makeup. Most days, I don't even brush my hair. Now, I look so different. Simon looks even more different, with his glasses gone. We nod to each other, and then mount the chariot.

The doors open, and District 1 disappears out into the crowd, amidst the most deafening noise I've ever heard. They're both in white—the girl a gown and the boy a suit—and they're covering in tiny diamonds. They sparkle in the lights. They look beautiful, as always.

The girl from 2 wears a flowing grey dress, while the boy wears a suit with patches of all shades of grey and black and brown. I don't really get it. "What are they supposed to be?" I ask Simon.

"I think the boy is rocks, and the girl must be factory smoke."

I nod. Okay. District 3 is dressed in metallic suits, kind of like robots, for technology. The 4's look gorgeous. They wear shiny, deep-blue leotards, with golden fishing nets draped over them. The girl from 5 is wearing a black dress with white lightning bolts, and the boy is wearing a white suit with black lightning bolts. Lightning for power, I guess. Both from 6 are wearing suits covered in wheels, gears, and other things that have to do with transportation. District 7, as usual, is dressed as trees. The District 8 tributes are both wearing patchwork for textiles. Both from 9 are covered in stalks of grain, which bounce around as the chariot moves. The two from 10 look pretty unhappy in their cow suits, and who can blame them? And then, it's our turn. I feel a wave of nervousness wash over me, even though this isn't really a big deal-it's nothing compared to the interview, which I don't even want to think about. I know what to do for this. The chariot lurches forward, and then we roll out. The sound is even louder out here in the open. I'm really overwhelmed by the sheer number of people, but I just smile and wave. I'm surprised by the encouraging cheers. I grow a little more confident, waving happily. We pull up next to the others, with the coal miners from 12 pulling up behind us. After Snow's speech, which I don't really listen to, the horses pull us back to the privacy and quiet of the stables.

_**Yay! Sorry if the ending seems a little abrupt, but the next tribute kinda picks up right where May leaves off. Also, I made Districts 5, 6, and 9 the specialties that they are in the movies (which I know is lame and I should base stuff on the books as much as possible) but remember I originally wrote this story around a year ago and am just slightly revising it now, so I thought it would be too complicated to change them now, especially since I don't think it really comes up again anyway. Blah blah blah lame apology over ok next chapter should be up tomorrow!**_


	4. Training

**_We're halfway to the actual games already! Here's Districts 3 and 5 with wrapping up the night and then training!_**

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

We get out of the carriage as the two prep teams, stylists, escort, and mentors come running. They're all smiles and compliments.

"Those costumes were amazing!"

"You looked great!"

"Did you hear those cheers?"

"They loved you!"

"You'll get sponsors for sure!"

I smile and thank them, but I know I can't believe them. Who knows? Maybe the Capitol citizens really did like us. But we went in between all the Careers, making us look even more pitiful by comparison. No matter how impressive we might have been, the fact of the matter is that we're still the two youngest tributes here.

Wiress, my strong, nineteen-year-old mentor who won two years ago, gives me a small smile before leading me to the elevators. My district partner, Pip, is in the elevator too, along with his mentor, Beetee. Beetee's getting a little older, but he's still going strong, and I think he's a great mentor. Not that Wiress isn't good herself.

Before the doors close, the girls from 6 and 10 get in with us. I lower my gaze. We must look ridiculous, with our mentors here to babysit us all the way up to our floor thirty seconds away. And the girl from 6 is by herself, and she can't be more than a few months older than me. She smiles at us. "Great job, guys!" she says. "Your costumes were so cool!"

I smile. "Thanks," I say shyly. "You too."

She smiles. "Thanks! I was worried this costume would be a little too crazy, but the crowd seemed to like it."

I nod. "I like it too," I lie.

"Well, thanks," she says. The girl from 10 stays silent, just eying us. I feel like she can sense all my thoughts, weaknesses, and fears. She is sca-ry. But at the same time, she's probably just as nervous as any of us, the way she feels like she needs to analyze us like that. She's probably searching for the secret motivation behind 6's words. But I don't think there is any; maybe I'm wrong, but she just seems like a genuinely nice girl.

Or, maybe the girl from 10 just doesn't want to draw attention to herself because she's wearing a cow suit.

"Bye, guys!" the girl from 6 says cheerfully as we get off at our floor. I turn to give a quick wave as the doors slide shut. Pip and Beetee disappear into the back rooms, but Wiress sits with me on the couch where we watched the reapings, and we talk strategy. I want to do this with her every second I can. Thank Panem I got a smart mentor. One who's fresh out of the Games, too. And one who's not too scarred by them, either. Wow. I really did luck out.

We talk for what must be two hours, me scheming away, and her explaining what's realistic and what's unrealistic about each of my plans. Finally, we wrap up by confirming what I'll do tomorrow during training—lay low, don't accept or reject any allies yet—and then I'm off to bed. I'm actually kind of looking forward to tomorrow. I'm going to learn survival and fighting skills and all that, but I'm also going to watch my opponents. Maybe I'll learn a thing or two that could help me in the arena.

Fiona Hayden, 15, District 5

I slowly drift out of sleep. Calvin is probably up already, making me breakfast. I wish he wouldn't do that. I'm fifteen years old, for Panem's sake. I can take care of myself. And he really doesn't need to baby me—he's only a year older than me. Maybe I should get up and go help him, just to prove a point.

"Good morning, Miss Hayden! Time to get up! Today's the da-hayyy!" my escort sings. My delusional half-asleep thoughts vanish as it all comes rushing back. I'm not at home. I'm in the Capitol, being fixed up for the 57th Hunger Games.

I roll out of bed and shuffle down the hall. I have some toast; I'm not that hungry. I'm too busy being worried. I'm going into this training room to face all these older, stronger, more experienced kids, and a lot of them have probably already formed alliances. At least I have an alliance, too. I formed one with my District partner, Felix. We figured we're both okay-skilled, but we're still underdogs. We'll be much stronger together.

My stylist brings me my uniform, and I go back to my room and put it on. I look at myself in the mirror. It's a simple, grey, full-body suit. But it's pretty tight. It shows off my fairly small frame. I'm strong and agile enough for someone my size, but I'm nothing compared to some of these other tributes.

Soon we're in the elevator. Thankfully, it's just us and our escort in the elevator this time. Last night, the pair from 1 was in the elevator with us. A.w.k.w.a.r.d.

The doors open to the training center. I gasp. It's _huge_. So much bigger than I ever could have imagined. Maybe Felix and I can just keep to ourselves. We'll clearly have plenty of space in this massive room. And maybe we'll learn a lot.

The tributes from 2 are there, right in front. A few other pairs are here so far, but we're one of the earliest. We gather around the head trainer and wait as the others arrive. Just as the man is about to get started, the tributes from 1 and 4 burst in, both of the girls laughing loudly. Everyone turns to stare at them. The girls continue to chuckle as they fall into place behind us.

"Attention-grabbers," the girl next to me mutters. Her tag says she's from District 10.

The man in front of us—the head trainer—briefly explains the stations to us, and then releases us to train. Here we go.

Pip Henri, 12, District 3

The six Careers—all the tributes from 1, 2, and 4—join together immediately. That must be nice, easily getting a strong pack of allies just by being from a certain district.

I walk over to the nearest open station—fire building—and sit down. The instructor is about to begin when that small girl from 11 sits down next to me. She might even be shorter than me. I'm tempted to ask her her height, but that would be weird. The instructor teaches both of us about building fires with wood, flint, and lots of other materials. I'm feeling pretty good about it by the end. I thank the instructor and go to the tree-climbing station, which will end up being extremely helpful if there are any trees at all in the arena. The pair from 5 is there. After that, I learn about edible plants at the same time as the boy from 6. I'm at the shelter-building station when the girl from 11 joins me again. I don't get it. If she wants an alliance, why doesn't she just say so?

I glance up from sharpening a stick to see the girl from 10 watching us. She doesn't look away when I see her. I look back down. When I look up a minute later, she's still there. Then she comes over and sits down next to us. She picks up a stick and starts sharpening it. She has it down to a fine point after about 30 seconds. A lot faster than me, I'll tell you that much.

"You two allies?" she asks, pointing at me and the girl from 11.

I'm taken aback by her talking to us. "Uh..."

"No." the girl from 11 cuts in.

"Well you should think about it. I bet you have different talents and stuff. You could help each other out."

"Um... yeah, maybe," she says.

"Here. Introduce yourselves. I'll start. I'm Roxy, from District Ten."

"Um... I'm May, from Eleven."

They look at me. "I'm Pip from Three."

Roxy smirks. "Okay. Now—" she cuts off, looking at something behind me. I turn. It's that blond girl from 4. She's staring right at us. She beckons to Roxy, who stands and goes over to her.

"Hey," the girl from 4 says. "Roxy, right? I'm Jasmine, from District Four. So the others and I were thinking of having a big pack this year. Get rid of everyone that much quicker, you know? We were thinking you, your district partner, and that guy from Eight. What do you think?"

Roxy smirks. "I don't think you actually want me in there."

"Come on, Ten! We all saw you with those spears and knives earlier. You'd fit right in. Promise."

Roxy shakes her head, smiling. "Sorry. I work alone."

Jasmine sighs. "Okay. But if you say no, you're just any other target."

Roxy gives a little laugh. "Sweetie, I'd be just another target even if I was in the alliance with you."

Jasmine frowns. "Fine."

Roxy rolls her eyes and returns to the two of us. "How about the three of us be allies?" she says.

_What?_ I happened to see her with the spears and knives earlier too. She's a real fighter. Why in the world would she need the two of us? "Um... I though you said you work alone," I say.

She laughs. "That was just to get rid of the blond," she says. "So what do you guys think?"

"I'm in," May says quickly.

"Um... Okay, me too," I say. I somehow don't really feel like I have a choice.

Felix Hendrix, 15, District 5

The arrow flies out of my bow once again. This time, it actually hits the target. It's not even close to a bull's-eye, but the target is a good twenty feet away from me. I'm pretty proud of myself. Fiona's been having even more luck. She even hit the bull's-eye a few minutes ago.

I turn to see the redhead from 1 talking to that serious guy from 10. The conversation is very short. The redhead stomps away. "What do you think she wanted?" I ask.

"Probably an alliance," Fiona says.

"With him? I mean... he's strong and all, but they already have six people, and he's definitely a step below them."

She shrugs. "Yeah, I don't know. Maybe they just wanted more people."

"Talking about us?" I jump and turn to see the tall orange-haired girl from 2 fitting an arrow into a bow. She fires. It's a perfect bull's-eye. She turns to me.

"Uh... we didn't mean..." I stammer.

She laughs. "Don't worry about it, Five. Yeah, some other people in the alliance wanted more members. We asked three people. They all said no." She fires another arrow at a dummy. It hits it right in the heart. "Can't say I blame them, personally. The alliance can get a little annoying. For example, I didn't want more than six members in the first place, but I never got a chance to say anything about it." Another arrow. It severs the rope holding up the dummy. "I'm over here right now in case Tison has a little temper tantrum when he finds out all three said no." I turn to see the redhead from 1 hesitantly breaking the news to Tison, her district partner. He growls, shoving her away. A trainer immediately rushes over, pulling him away. The girl from 2 shakes her head. "See?"

I nod.

"Um... nice talking to you," Fiona says, pulling me away.

When we're safe at a knot-tying station, Fiona sighs. "That was weird," she says.

I nod. "Yeah. And the whole time she was firing those arrows... creepy."

Fiona nods. "Funny, she seems nice enough, but not here. Here she's just... I don't know. The enemy, basically."

I give an uncomfortable little laugh. "Yeah. I'm happy if we just keep to ourselves."

"So do you know what you might do for your private session yet?" she asks.

I shake my head. "No idea. Maybe attack a dummy with an ax or something. You?"

"I think I'm gonna get more practice in with the arrows and fool around with those."

"Ugh."

She frowns. "What?"

"It's just annoying that even if we get the best score we possibly can, it will still be lower than those Careers."

"But you don't know that for sure."

"Yeah, I kinda do, though."

She sighs. "I guess you're right. Well, we just have to try as hard as we can."

_**Yay another awkward ending but tune in tomorrow for chapter 5! And have a good Thanksgiving if you live in the US!**_


	5. Private Sessions

_**Happy Thanksgiving! Here is the continued story of 24 kids who have a lot less to be thankful for than we do :p This is Districts 4 and 7 with private training sessions, and then an extra point of view from one of the Gamemakers so we can see all the scores!**_

Scorpio Monteigno, 17, District 4

Destiny can't seem to sit still. Tison raises an eyebrow at her bouncing in her chair. "Are you related to Cynthia Sunshine?" he asks.

She laughs loudly. "No way, thank Panem! I'm sorry, I'm just so excited."

"Yeah, you're one of the only ones," Clara says, looking around the room. We're in the lunchroom, awaiting our turn to go in for our private session with the Gamemakers.

I look around the room. Clara's right, as usual. Most of the others look really nervous. I'm not, of course. I'm sure none of the Careers are. I can't imagine how awful that would be, knowing you're not going to be good enough to get a high score.

"Tison Maxwell," a calm female voice announces. He rises slowly and marches from the room. I glance around and see the other tributes watching him in fear. Man. All he has to do is walk out of a room and he's inflicted fear. Maybe for his private session, he should just walk around.

"Destiny Hartman," the voice calls no more than ten minutes later. She jumps up, gives us a little wave, and bounces out of the room. Marius sighs. "She's quite a handful," he says. We all laugh at that. He's right, Destiny is a handful, but she benefits the alliance. The Capitol eats up happy people like her, which makes our alliance even more supported. Plus, her happy tone can help balance out Tison's anger, and my and Clara's seriousness. Not to mention she's scary with a sword.

I'm sure she's done curtsying to the Gamemakers, or whatever she does, and is swinging a sword around at this very moment. She's lucky she gets to go second. I'm bored of waiting already.

Marius is called. Then Clara. Then the two from 3. Finally, it's my turn. "Good luck!" Jasmine calls cheerfully. I nod at her, and then walk into the training room.

It's so quiet. I'm used to the voices, thumps, and clangs of the past three days echoing through the high ceilings. Now, only my footsteps echo through the room. Or they would be echoing, but they don't. I've been taught to walk light on my feet ever since I was young.

"Scorpio Monteigno, District Four," I announce. The Gamemaker in the center nods, and I march right for the knives, scooping up five. I know I can't quite hit the bull's-eye every time with these, so instead I aim for a dummy. I throw them fast. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom. Four in the torso, one in the head. I head for the next station over, the swords. I scoop one up and lunge at a dummy, whacking it around and then jabbing it through the stomach. I pull the sword out and slice the head off. It falls to the ground, spilling stuffing everywhere. Then I cut down the rope that was holding the dummy up and tie it into a noose-like loop within a few seconds. I cut down another dummy, loop the noose around its head, and hang it back up. Time for the finale. The spears. My weapon of choice. It's hard not to sprint over there. I pull the whole rack of spears up next to me, and throw them, one after another after another. Bull's-eye, bull's-eye, bull's-eye, on all the targets. Soon all the targets have a spear right in the center. I return to the area in front of the Gamemakers' table, and give a little bow.

"Thank you," one says. "You may go." His expression is blank, but I know that they are told to stay that way. They must be impressed. I head out to the elevators, satisfied with my performance.

Jasmine Welsh, 17, District 4

I didn't realize I would be the last Career in here until... well, until I'm the last Career in here. We were the only people making any noise, so now I can feel everyone else's eyes on me. Whatever. I drum my fingers on the table. Scorpio better make his performance quick. This is awkward.

But they call my name soon enough, and I glide from the room, my head held high.

There they are, waiting for me. The Gamemakers nod as I curtsy before them, and I go to it. I don't dash towards the knife-throwing station like I want to—I so, so, so want to—but not yet. Instead, I run in the opposite direction. I grab a pole that's holding up a dummy and climb up it. I crawl onto the bar that extends out on top, and stand on it. Yikes, this is higher than I thought. I walk along it, and then jump to another beam that's even higher. I keep going. There's a whole row of hanging dummies. I noticed how perfect it would be during training. I jump from beam to beam, until I get to one right below one of the room's lights. It hangs from a chain. It's so perfect. I leap up, catching the chain. The light swings a little, and then I'm climbing up the chain until I reach the ceiling. The ceiling is covered in wooden beams that crisscross each other. It's almost like they built it just so someone could climb up here. I reach up and pull myself up so I'm on my stomach on the boards. I'm in the ceiling. I shuffle on my stomach until I get to another light. I slip out, slide down the chain, and leap to the rock-climbing wall a few feet away. I climb sideways to the edge, where there's another hanging dummy. These things are everywhere. I climb on top of the beam it hangs from, and then leap to another dummy pole, then another, taller one. From there, I lean out and fall towards the ground, but only for a few seconds—I catch one of the branches of the artificial trees they have for practice-climbing. I swing from it for a few seconds, then let go, flying forwards and landing on the ground in a summersault, tumbling and rolling to break my fall. I do one more flip, and roll right to my feet. I'm standing right in the knife station.

Boom.

That was just the opening act, my friend. I grab a handful of knives and throw. Knife after knife after knife. Three target bull's-eyes. But that's boring. I switch my next knife to hit a rope holding up a dummy. Then one of the clay handholds on the rock-climbing wall. Then... I turn around. Ah. There's a banner hanging on the wall with "The 57th Annual Hunger Games" written on it. The two A's in "annual" get knives right in their little holes. I stride up to the Gamemakers' table and give a little curtsey. The one in the middle nods. "Thank you, Miss Welsh," he says. "You may go."

"Thank you!" I say happily, and flounce from the room.

I'm pretty awesome.

Cedar Green, 17, District 7

"Good luck," Jewel, my district partner, says politely.

"Thanks," I say.

The training room seems so much bigger now that it's empty. More intimidating, too. I don't even know what I'm supposed to do as an introduction. I awkwardly bow to the Gamemakers. They nod.

Okay. Go.

I climb up the artificial tree. I wish I could say I darted up it or something, but it takes me a good amount of time to get up. Then I just shimmy back down. I light a fire next. I'm pretty quick at that. Then I swing an ax around. I'm really comfortable with axes, but the Gamemakers might not be too impressed, considering I'm from the lumber district. Still, it doesn't really matter _why_ I'm good with the ax. Point is, I am. I swing it around for a while, beheading a dummy or two. Alright, that's it. I'm out of skills. I don't really get what happened. I had three days to learn something. I guess the other stuff I learned, like edible plants or how to build a shelter in half an hour, aren't really things you can demonstrate, especially within ten or fifteen minutes. Oh well. To be honest, I don't care too much about my score. Either people will sponsor be or they won't. Plus, I don't think I'll need sponsors that much. I'm pretty good at survival skills now.

Jewel Conroy, 18, District 7

"Jewel Conroy."

I take a deep breath and exit the lunchroom.

I know I'm in trouble the minute I walk in. The Gamemakers look pretty bored. Five people have gone since the Careers. That probably adds up to almost an hour since they've seen something exciting. And I already know I won't be anything too exciting either.

I pick up a bow. That's the weapon I've had the most luck with during the past three days. But it's still not that much luck. I string a bow and shoot. At least it hits the target. I shoot a few more times, and then decide to try for a target that's farther away. I shoot. The arrow flies close to the target, but it doesn't hit it. Oops. I fire a few more arrows at the closer target, hoping to end on a higher note. Then I turn and curtsy. "You may go," one of the Gamemakers says.

I ride the elevator up to my floor. Cedar's already there, slouched on the couch and not looking particularly happy. He looks up as I walk in. "How'd it go?" he asks.

"Bad," I say flatly. "You?"

He shrugs. "I flung an ax around. Nothing too impressive, though."

Hearing us, our mentors, Blight and Zayla, come in. Zayla won a long time ago, so she's pretty old now. Blight is much younger, and still strong. He only won a few years ago. "So, not too good, huh?" he asks.

We shake our heads.

"Ah, that's alright," he says.

Zayla nods. "It's not about how people expect you to do in the Games; it's how you actually do."

I want to be reassured by her words, but I'm not, because I know that "how I actually do in the Games" isn't going to be good, either.

I sigh and try not to think about that now. We have a few hours, and then we find out our scores.

Zoe Skyla, 27, Capitol

"Alright, alright, quiet down. Yes, that pie was excellent, but now we need to focus," says Head Gamemaker Marika Shields. _The_ Marika Shields. The Marika Shields who, by some stroke of luck, decided to hire me as a Gamemaker this year. But somehow, she's also turned out to be very fair and actually pretty nice, even though she has a tough reputation to uphold.

"Okay, let's get right to it," she says. She is just so efficient. "Tison Maxwell was very impressive with the weapons he showed us, although he clearly doesn't think before he acts. I wrote down a nine for him. What about you guys? Be honest." We all nod in agreement. I actually am being honest. I wrote down 9.

"Destiny Hartman was excellent with the sword. I wrote down an eight for her."

The other Gamemakers quickly all say 8 too, although I can see some of their forms, and they wrote down 9.

I clear my throat. "Miss Shields? According to the official training score rubric, a performance should receive a nine if it surprises the scorers in some way. I thought she was pretty surprising, the way she skipped in like she was harmless, and then picked up a sword and suddenly transformed into a deadly fighter."

She looks at me. "Hm. You're right. Thank you, Zoe." Oh my Panem, she knows my name! She writes down a 9 on the final scoring form.

We continue to discuss the other tributes until we come up with final statements and scores that we can all agree on:

Marius Sweeney showed us good skill with a few different weapons. 9.

Clara James showed us great skill with a _ton_ of weapons. 10.

Pip Henri showed very good survival skills, but no fighting skills. 3.

Harmony Goldman demonstrated how to make several traps and snares. 5.

Scorpio Monteigno showed good skill with knives and swords and excellent skill with spears. 9.

Jasmine Welsh's little performance surprised us all. 10.

Felix Hendrix showed good skill with climbing trees and building shelter, and fair skill with a sword. 5.

Fiona Hayden showed fairly good skill with and bow and throwing knives. 6.

River Dartmouth was good with a sword. 6.

Adrielle Harper told us that she is good at throwing metal disks as a weapon, but they were not available. She was fairly good with throwing-stars instead. 5.

Cedar Green showed fair climbing skills, good fire-starting skills, and good ax skills. 5.

Jewel Conroy showed fair skills with a bow, but nothing else. 5.

Crunch Samuels demonstrated great skill with a club, an ax, and a sword. 8.

Phoenix Jefferson was hopeless at her attempt with a bow, but she did light a fire. 3.

Emmanuel Hester had fair skill with knives. 4.

Sierra Reilly was fair with spears. 4.

Bruce Turner showed us good skill with several close-combat weapons, but no distance weapons. 7.

Roxy Benvolio surprised us with excellent skill with spears, knives, a bow, and a sword. 9.

Simon Rolofan had good survival skills, but weak fighting skills. 4.

May Avriel had excellent survival skills, but just about zero fighting skills. 4.

Frederik Carter had fair skill with an ax, but that's all he showed us. 5.

Ella Smithsonian threw ten knives. Only two hit the target, but at least she was persistent. 3.

Marika writes in the final score and hands the form off to an assistant, who will take it to some sort of producer to publish on tv tonight.

And then we're done. My first scoring session with Marika Shields is over. With any luck, I'll be back next year to do it again.


	6. The Interviews

**_Final chapter before the actual Games start! This one's a little longer because there's another Capital person point of view, but I wanted to make sure to show all the tributes again before the Games! Here are our last four, from Districts 8 and 10, with finding out scores and then the interviews!_**

Crunch Samuels, 18, District 8

"Okay, everyone, into the living room for scores!" says our escort, a completely snow-white man without a single hair on his body. Freak.

I push my chair back and stand. My chair falls over. Guess I stood up too fast. My district partner jumps and lets out a little squeal. I glare at her. "Sorry," she mutters, and hurries into the living room.

An Avox creeps over to lift up my chair, but I push him away. I'm not some helpless Capitol freak. I can pick up one chair, for Panem's sake.

Everyone's sitting in the living room by the time I get in there. The escort sits in the middle, his back straight and stiff. I guess he's excited. Freak. My district partner is curled up on the very edge of the couch. Cecilia, last year's victor, moves over so I can sit. I like Cecilia. Maybe we'll get married after I win.

The tv comes on and the scores start. High scores for the Careers, low or medium scores for everyone else, as usual. Then my score comes up. 8. Everyone is too busy getting excited over me to pay attention to my partner or her score. That's how it usually is with the two of us—I get the attention, she fades into the background. I think the mentors have pretty much given up on her. Come to think of it, I don't even know her name. Doesn't matter. In two days, she'll be none of my concern. She's none of my concern even now.

Now they're telling us to rest up for interview training tomorrow. Just another thing in my way. I don't understand why we can't just get to the Games already. Oh well. I'm ready either way.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

"Okay, clever won't work either," Cecilia says, sighing. "Let's try mysterious."

I nod. "I'll try," I say.

"So Phoenix, how does it feel to be about to enter the Hunger Games?" she says, pretending to be Caesar Flickerman.

"Um, well, I don't think you could imagine how it possibly feels."

"I don't think I could either. Now about your low training score. What do you think went wrong?"

"I'll never tell you what happened."

"Ohh-kay. Uh... so what's your strategy going to be?"

"You'll have to wait and see."

"Come on! Give us a hint."

"Um... I won't say."

"Ooh, a mystery! I love it!"

"I like mysteries, too."

Cecilia sighs again. "Yeah, that's not going to work either." She looks up at the clock. "We're out of time. Look, just try to be honest, okay? The audience will be able to tell if you try to put up a fake personality."

I nod. "Thanks for your help," I say halfheartedly.

"Oh... you're welcome." I can tell she knows she hasn't helped me at all. Oh well. I didn't expect her to be able to.

My stylist soon comes and gets me. He gives me basic stage makeup and pulls my long, dark hair into a braid that curls around the side of my neck. Then he gives me my dress. Once it's on, I look in the mirror.

I'm surprising by how... beautiful I look. My dark hair and eyes shine against my pale face. My dress is short and white, with light yellow-orange stripes slanting all over it. I don't think it has any sort of significance, but it's still flattering. I love it. Back in my district, I always dressed simply. The things I say in my interview may not help me out too much, but maybe, just maybe, my appearance will earn me some support.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

I strut in a slow circle in front of the mirror. My stylist, a trembling old man who jumps every time I talk, eyes me nervously.

"It's perfect," I say.

He stares at me, stunned. "Y-you like it?"

I roll my eyes. "Didn't I just say that?"

"I...Well...Thank you, Miss Benvolio. It was a pleasure to work with you." He scampers out of the room. Am I really that scary?

I look in the mirror again. I really do think that what my stylist gave me is perfect. I'm wearing a black, tiered leather dress that comes to just above my knees, and black ankle boots. He also gave me black smoky-eye makeup. My auburn, almost-red hair stands out against all the black. I look like a villain. Ha. Maybe I am. Anyway, I do look brave and fierce. This is _exactly_ what I asked for. What do you know, the old man pulled through for me.

The escort takes me and Bruce down to the wings, where all the tributes are lined up backstage. She wishes us luck and disappears. I stand behind the blonds from 9, who avoid eye contact with me. Once again, they match; they're both wearing red. I don't get it. They're not even related. What's the point?

Whatever. I look down the line. Everyone else seems to have gone with the "pretty" angle. Which is stupid; it's the Capitol. You get a professional stylist. Everyone looks pretty now. Sorry, but now none of you are going to stand out for your prettiness.

I frown. That tall redhead girl from 2 is wearing black, too. Orange-ish hair on black clothing, like me. Whatever. After my interview, there's no way the Capitol people will mix us up.

Suddenly it's time to go onstage. We all file out in a line, and the crowd screams. I grin at them and bow with everyone else. Then we all sit at the back as Caesar makes his introduction speech, then calls up that prissy girl from 1. She flounces up, grinning and waving, amidst much cheering. Ugh, she's such a princess. Whatever. Now I just have to sit and wait. And wait. And wait. And wait.

Devera Spring, 14, Capitol

"Come on, hurry up!" Liliana calls.

I grab the soda bottle and cups, while Charlene grabs the popcorn bowl. Because, honestly, how can you watch tv without popcorn and soda?

"It's on!" Liliana screams. We run into her bedroom and lie on our stomachs, snacks laid out in front of us. I settle down just in time to hear Caesar Flickerman say, "Why don't we get started?" My friends and I cheer right along with the crowd on the tv. I sigh. I so wish I could be there.

"Girls, keep it down please!" My mom calls from downstairs, where she's watching with my dad and my friends' parents. She is so embarrassing.

"Oh come on, Hallie, let them have their fun," My dad's loud voice echoes up the stairs. Ugh. He's embarrassing too.

Whatever. Point is, now Destiny Hartman's coming forward, and she looks _gorgeous_. She's wearing a sparkling blue satin gown, and her red hair is curled and flows down her chest.

"My parents might let me dye my hair that color," Liliana says.

Charlene gasps. "Lucky!"

"Shhh!" I say. The interview is starting.

"You look lovely tonight, Destiny!"

She smiles. "Thanks, Caesar! So do you!"

We all laugh. With his traditional blue suit and mustard-yellow hair, Caesar looks good, but far from lovely.

Soon Destiny's talking about her two sisters who were both in the Games, one two years ago and the other one five years ago. The first had green hair and the second had blue hair. And now red hair!

"I remember them!" I say.

"Me too!" Liliana says. "Another Hartman sister! Awesome!"

Then Destiny talks about her younger sister, who can volunteer in a few years if she wants, but Destiny promises that she won't have to because Destiny will already be a victor. "Plus," she says, smiling out at us, "she still has brown hair. Bo-ring!"

We laugh along with the on-screen crowd again. Destiny continues her interview, remaining happy, charming, and confident throughout the whole thing.

"Up next... Tison Maxwell!"

"Eek!" Liliana screams excitedly. "...What?" she asks when Charlene and I turn to look at her. "I like him!"

Tison's interview is pretty much what you would expect—he's fairly serious, very confident, as intimidating as always, and promises us a good show. But then again, it's a good show every year.

Next is Clara James. She looks scary, with her toe-length black dress and fierce gaze. She remains serious throughout the interview too, calmly saying that she knows she has the ability to win. That's what the Careers always say. But then she says that a lot of people are going to act confident about winning, but they're lying, and she's the only one who actually knows she can win. A lot of the tributes behind her look terrified by the time she's done.

I squeal right along with Liliana when Marius Sweeney comes up. He is just so cute. He's wearing a simple black tux, but he looks amazing. His brown hair has been gelled into a neat kind of messy, and his brown eyes shine. He gives us a charming smile. We all sigh. I don't really catch what he says during the interview. He keeps smiling and throwing little looks and winks at the audience, so I'm distracted. I think he's my favorite.

Time for a little break from the Careers. Harmony Goldman couldn't be more different from them. She's wearing a pink cotton dress, and her brown hair flutters around her face, making it look like she's almost hiding behind it. But I'm surprised by how confident she is. She talks about how she is good at thinking on her feet and coming up with good strategies, which will help her out. She wavers a little when she talks about her younger sister back home, but by the end, she's smiling confidently again.

Pip Henri's really different from the Careers too, obviously. He goes into this whole story about how he has a 17-year-old brother named Marcus who uses a wheelchair, who felt awful about not volunteering in Pip's place. Pip looks right at the camera and delivers a speech directly to Marcus, saying that Marcus should never, ever feel sorry. Pip would rather be in the Games than have Marcus there. We all awww, and so does the live audience there. I have to give the kid credit; he's being pretty brave.

Back to Careers. Jasmine Welsh comes forward, and once again I feel awful because I know I will never look that good. She's wearing a really short, tight, strapless white dress. It has little gold sequins clumped together in one corner, and then they slowly fan out over the dress. Her blond hair is smooth and shiny and perfect. She smiles smugly at the audience. She must know how amazing she looks. She's confident too. She graciously thanks Caesar for his many compliments. When he asks her about how she got a 10 in training, she merely smiles and says it's a secret. Ugh! I wanted to know! But before I know it, her timer goes off, and she smiles and waves as she returns to her seat. I'm totally rooting for her.

Scorpio Monteigno doesn't talk much. He answers Caesar's questions in brief answers, not showing much emotion. But he's clearly confident, too. He talks about how spears are his best weapon. He also talks about how he volunteered because he wants to change the lives of his parents, who aren't that rich and live as ordinary workers. He wants to get them victor's money so they can retire. How sweet.

Now the Careers are done! Ugh. They're always the best. Fiona Hayden's next. She's wearing a plain green dress and boots. Her auburn hair is pulled back in a ponytail. She looks less pretty and more ready to enter the Games at a moment's notice. She talks about her family, her parents and her brother, and then she goes into this whole rant about how the Games have a lot to do with luck. How even a skilled tribute could end up not winning just because of bad luck. She wraps up by saying that if luck is on her side, she believes she can win.

Felix Hendrix is similar. He talks about his family and his life back in the district, which is pretty boring since he still goes to school, just like any kid from Panem. Then he talks about reaping day, and how a few minutes after they got on the train, he and Fiona decided to be allies. He says he wants to do everything he can to protect her. That's so sweet! But I don't get it. How does he plan to win if he's busy protecting Fiona?

Adrielle Harper is next. She's wearing a simple, flowing, light-blue dress. Like Harmony, she looks young. She gives Caesar a friendly smile, as well as a smile to the audience. Throughout her interview, she's happy, even when she talks about her family—her parents and her two older brothers. She says that this has definitely been the best week of her life, and that she loves the Capitol. Liliana, Charlene and I whoop at that. We like the Capitol too! Well, duh. Then she talks about how she thinks she can do well in the Games if she can get her hands on some metal throwing-disks. I don't remember ever seeing anyone using those before. That would be cool to see a new weapon.

And then... River Dartmouth. All three of us gasp as he comes forward. His deep blue suit brings out his eyes. His hair looks perfect. His face looks _beyond_ perfect. I think I'm in love. He blows a kiss right at the camera. I imagine that it's directed at me. My heart flutters. I can tell Liliana and Charlene are thinking pretty much the same thing. I frown. He's _mine_. River's another one who I don't catch much of because I'm busy watching his face. But there's one part where Caesar asks what he showed the Gamemakers to get that 7 in training and some girl in the audience calls out, "His muscles!" Everyone cheers. Then he stands up, rolls up his sleeves, and flexes for us. We cheer, and so does the live audience. He frowns. "Darn," he says. "If I'd done that, I probably would have gotten a twelve." I crack up for a long time. When I calm down, he's talking about his sister and gets all serious. I remember her from the reaping tape. She was so cute! But she looked so sad. Okay, that's it, I'm rooting for this guy all the way.

Jewel Conroy is wearing a long white dress, contrasting her dark hair and eyes. She's pretty boring. She talks about how her parents died two years ago and she was an only child, so she lives alone, but she goes around helping people now. She says if she wins, she'll have more money to help people even more. Liliana yawns. "Blah, blah, blah," she says. Charlene shushes her, but I can't help kinda agreeing.

Cedar Green is wearing a green shirt. He goes into this hilarious bit about how everyone is his life is so creative: His ancestors, for picking the last name Green, when they live in the lumber district and are surrounded by trees. His parents, for naming him Cedar, a kind of tree. His stylist, for giving him a green shirt. Kind of like the color of a tree. He gives a friendly wave up to the stylist booth. The screen cuts to a younger woman sitting in the stylists' balcony. She smirks and gives a tense wave at the camera as the crowd laughs below, but she's clearly not amused.

Phoenix Jefferson from District 8 is awful. She's clearly really nervous. When Cedar asks how she feels about the upcoming Games, she goes, "Um... Well... Okay. So my mentor told me I should just be honest. So, to be honest, I'm really scared." _Come on!_ Even I would know to at least _pretend_ to be less scared. But hey, at least she looks good. I would probably buy that striped dress she's wearing.

Crunch Samuels terrifies me. He doesn't say much, but he doesn't have to. Caesar has everyone laughing when he tells Crunch to sit down and then stands up himself so they can be level with each other. Crunch says that the Careers invited him to join their alliance, but he said no because he doesn't need them. He can win on his own. I completely believe him. I mean, even his name is scary!

Sierra Reilly is _so pretty_. Her dress is simple, a red, tiered, knee-length little thing, but I just think tan skin, blond hair, and blue eyes look great together. She talks about her fourteen-year-old sister, who she misses a lot. She also tells Caesar all about her necklace. The camera zooms in on it. It's a choker with three rectangular light-blue stones on it. She says the three stones represent love, generosity, and bravery. The necklace belonged to her grandmother, and before she died, she used to always say that those were the three most important things in life. Then Sierra says that she thinks she already has love and generosity, and that if she can find bravery, she can go far in these Games.

"That's _so deep_," Liliana says, awestruck. I have to agree. Sierra seems really nice, and smart, too. I hope she wins. She deserves it.

Her district partner, Emmanuel, matches her again. Panem have mercy. These two look the same, had the exact same chariot outfit, got the same training score, and now have coordinating interview outfits? And you're telling me they're not even related? Caesar actually starts out by pointing that out, how similar they are. Emmanuel reminds us that they're really not related. I'm still not buying it. Then he goes into this really sweet speech about how Sierra is one of the nicest people he's ever met, and he's so glad that they're going to be allies because the Games aren't going to be half as bad with her by his side. The cameras zoom in on Sierra sitting at the back, and I'm pretty sure she has tears in her eyes!

"OMP!" Liliana says. "That is so cute! I'm gonna cry!" She waves her hands in front of her face.

Roxy Benvolio from 10 is really different. Her whole dark getup is pretty intimidating.

"How does she wear that whole creepy thing and still look pretty?!" Liliana wails. I agree once again. It's so unfair.

Roxy's really sarcastic, smirking and sneering and tossing her head the whole time. She says that people may underestimate her, and that will be a deadly mistake. Is she kidding? If I was a tribute, I'd be pretty scared of her. I'd be _really_ scared of her.

"Who does she remind me of?" Liliana says as Roxy takes her bow.

"Clara from Two," Charlene says.

"Yeah, yeah, her! So confusing."

"Really? Clara's so dark and serious. Roxy's always grinning and stuff," Charlene says.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. I like them both."

I like them too. They might be my two favorites.

"Ooh, another big guy! Holy Panem, they're scary this year!" Liliana says. She's right. Bruce Turner is coming up for his interview, and he looks scary.

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

Finally. I stride forward to more applause. Caesar and I exchange greetings, and then he asks me about my life at home. I tell him about it pretty briefly; there's not much to tell. Finally we get around to the important stuff. He congratulates me on my score. Then he asks me how I feel about the Games.

"Not worried at all."

He smiles. "I love the confidence! And what makes you so unafraid?"

"I know all of my enemies' weaknesses."

"Oh-ho! Really? All of them?"

I nod. "Want me to prove it?"

"Go ahead!"

"Alright. All the Careers are way too confident, so at some point, they're gonna overestimate themselves, make some dumb mistake, and then they'll be in trouble. Harmony's smart, but once she actually has to fight someone face to face, she's done for. Pip is just too small. He won't be able to fight either. Fiona and Felix just don't have the skills they'll need later in the Games. Adrielle probably won't get those disks she wants, and even if she does, she won't have the guts to use them. River may think he's set with sponsors and stuff, but sponsors only get you so far. When it comes to actual fighting, he's not ready. Jewel, Cedar, and Phoenix just doesn't have enough skill. Crunch is brawn, but not enough brains. Sierra and Emmanuel... and both from Eleven and Twelve, actually... yeah, they all just don't have the fighting skills they need to win."

There's a stunned silence. I pretty much just told everyone why they're going to die.

Caesar clears his throat. "And um, you don't think you have any weaknesses yourself?"

I shake my head. "I've got the right balance of physical and mental capabilities. I'll be just fine."

There's not much time left. Caesar talks about how he's assured I'm ready for the Games, I agree with him, blah blah blah. Then the timer goes off. That's it. I've left quite the mark, I think.

11 and 12 go by without much excitement. We all know they're terrified, we all know none of those four will win; they're just interviewing them because they have to.

The night ends, and Roxy and I head up to our floor. Roxy nods at me. "Nice little speech. I think you really scared some of the others." A grin slides onto her face. "Funny, though, there was something missing." She leans up to my face. "You forgot about me," she whispers. I just stand there, surprised. She backs up, and flashes me one last grin. "Nighto!" she calls, and runs off down the hall.

Shoot. I did forget her. It's just like she said. People underestimate her.

And now that I consider her, I can't think of a single weakness.

Devera Spring, 14, Capitol

Liliana flicks the tv off. "That was _so good_," she muses.

I nod. "Yeah. That girl from Eleven, though? Come on." Her blue dress has been pretty short and tight. She was obviously trying to look older. It didn't work.

Liliana rolls her eyes. "Right? Please, sweetie, you're not fooling anyone."

"The last four were so boring," I add. "Like, even Ella's dress. That shade of pink is too pale to be pretty, plus the dress was way too fluffy."

"And long. I'm surprised she didn't trip!" Liliana says. We all giggle.

"So who do you guys like the best?" Charlene asks.

I frown. I had a favorite. I really did. Which one was it? I could swear I picked out one favorite.

"I like Marius and River," Liliana says right away.

"Me too," I say. I feel like I remember liking other people too, but I forget now anyways. "Who do you like?" I ask Charlene.

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe that girl from 6."

Girl from 6, girl from 6... Which one...

Liliana scoffs. "That younger one? Adrielle? Why? She's a bloodbath for sure."

Charlene sighs. "Yeah, I know. She just seems nice."

Liliana rolls her eyes. "Charlene. Being _nice_ doesn't get you anywhere. You have to be, well, good. Now Marius and River, they're good." I nod in agreement.

Charlene nods too. "Well then, I guess for good people, I like Clara."

Liliana rolls her eyes. "Another boring one? Come on."

"She seems way more down to earth than the other Careers. Plus she's good, like you said."

"Whatever." Liliana says, hitting Charlene with a pillow. "You're a weird one."

"Hey!"

A pillow fight follows. And don't say we're too old for that kind of thing. You're never too old for a pillow fight.


	7. The Bloodbath

**_We're here! The Bloodbath! Time to start ripping tributes away from you! Um... Enjoy?_**

Cedar Green, 17, District 7

The night drags by, which I guess is a good thing. I wish I could put off the Games forever. But of course I can't. After hours of restless tossing and turning, it's time to go. Our stylists take me and Jewel up to a roof. "Uh… Goodbye," Jewel says. "And good luck."

I nod. "You too." And that's it. We're separated. Then it all passes in a blur. I'm frozen to a ladder by some sort of current, and a small metal thing, which I'm told is a tracker, is injected into my arm. We're in a helicopter for about half an hour. During that time, my stylist gives me my arena outfit. It's fairly simple: a black, cotton, short-sleeved shirt that goes under a warmer green jacket. Black, comfortable pants. Lightweight brown boots that shouldn't be too hard to run in. Plus, a black belt with little slots and pouches that will be good for holding things like weapons and water bottles. The clothes are fine, but don't give me a lot of clues as to what the arena will be like. Not that knowing at this point would make that much of a difference.

The hovercraft engine's hum begins to grow lower. "We're landing!" My stylist tells me excitedly. There's a tense pause, and then I feel us hit the ground.

We're here.

Fiona Hayden, 15, District 5

We're in the loading room. The stockyard, I've heard it called. But this stockyard has a shower. I take a shower, hoping it will calm my nerves. I step out and put on my arena outfit. I pause, wondering if that was the last shower of my life. I frown, vowing that it won't be. And this won't be my last outfit.

I step out of the little bathroom. My stylist, a flaky man who I never liked, is sitting there, looking almost bored. There's a table with some food and water on it. I drink as much water as I can keep down, remembering what my mentor told me: that I should drink as much as I can going in, since there's no way of knowing when I'll have access to water again.

"Ten minutes," a calm female voice announces.

And suddenly, it washes over me. The reality of it all. My fingers grow numb and weak. The plastic cup I'm holding falls to the floor.

Ten minutes. Less now. In less than 600 seconds, I'm going to be out in the open, with nothing between me and my other competitors. A minute after that, and I'm fair game. The rules will no longer apply. The rules that kept us from hurting each other during training. From lashing out at the people sitting next to us during the interviews. Suddenly, everyone is going to turn on each other. And there's nothing I can do to stop it.

I'm on the floor. The stylist tenses up, unsure what he's supposed to do with me. I curl up. I can't go out there. I'm so, so scared. My breathing grows uneven. Tears fall from my eyes. I'm freaking out. I'm having a panic attack.

"Five minutes."

Half of my time before I'm out in the open, gone. Even just the presence of the Capitol citizens everywhere kept me in a false sense of being safe, at least for a week. But they're all gone. Just me. Just me against 23 enemies.

_No_, I remind myself. _Not 23 opponents. 22. 22, 22, 22._

I force myself to concentrate on Felix's face in my mind and I remind myself that I'm not alone. Felix, who's been there for me from the time I was reaped and is still going to be there for me now, is going to protect me. He promised me that, again and again. Not only that, but I promised I would protect him, too. I can't break down like this now. I have to be there for him just as much as he is for me.

It's one of the hardest things I've ever done, but I struggle as hard as I can to pull myself together as the voice tells me I have two minutes left. I pull myself off the ground and breathe deeply. My stylist stares at me, relieved. I glare at him and march right over to the metal plate that will take me to the arena. I stand there until the voice says one minute. My stylist comes over, looking at me sadly, like he wants to say something. I just shoot him another glare.

"I… I'm sorry if this is scary for you. Good luck," he says quietly, and turns away. My glare fades. I'm surprisingly touched.

"Thank you," I say sincerely. He turns back, surprised, and gives me a small smile. I manage to smile back as the tube slides down around me, and the plate starts to rise. Caught up in the moment, I wave to my stylist, but then turn, forcing myself to focus again. I can do this.

May Avriel, 14, District 11

My eyes adjust to the sunlight fairly quickly, and I look around. I can't believe it! There are trees everywhere. This is exactly what I was telling Caesar about in my interview—that my ideal arena would have woods everywhere. They would let me be safer and more comfortable, because I work in the forests of District 11, collecting berries and mushrooms, and sometimes fruits in the treetops. And there are trees here! We're in a grassy clearing, and it's surrounded by trees on all sides. A lot of it is regular trees, like oak or pine, but I can see an area of evergreen trees, another patch of willow trees, and in the distance, I can even see redwood trees looming over the rest of the forest. I think this arena has more trees that any other arena I've seen on tv growing up.

I can't help it. I feel a smile creep onto my face.

Devera Spring, 14, Capitol

Liliana, Charlene, and I are together again. This time, we're at my house. They came over last night after the interviews, slept over, and this morning, we're watching the beginning of the actual Games!

But of course there's a pregame show first. I just hope they make it quick.

Cynthia Sunshine's yellow skin seems to be glowing in excitement. Her orange hair is spiked and pulled away from her face, going around it and making her look like an actual sun. Cute!

"Good morning, Panem! This is Cynthia Sunshine, here with Caesar Flickerman, ready to give you your pregame show! The tributes are preparing to enter the arena at this very moment! I'm very excited, and I know the citizens of Panem are, too, so Caesar and I promise to make this as brief as possible!" Caesar nods in agreement. "Okay," Cynthia continues, "I would just like to say that rumors have been flying all over the Capitol about which tributes will be doing well, and I have to say, just about every tribute's name has come up!"

Caesar nods. "I've been hearing great things about everyone too! We have a great group this year. If they keep their wits about them, I think every single one of them has the potential to win."

"I certainly hope so!" Cynthia says. "I'm sure they won't disappoint us!"

"Ah, yes, they've all greatly impressed me in this past week. We'll just have to wait and see if they live up to our expectations!"

Cynthia nods. "Right!" She turns to the cameras. "Well, that certainly felt as brief as possible to me! So let's not make it a minute longer! Without further ado, let's switch over to our tributes! And of course, may the odds be ever in your favor!" The camera cuts away to an aerial shot of the arena. The three of us all scream. Suddenly, it's finally happening! Yes, yes, _yes!_

Now we get a close-up of each of the tributes' faces, one by one, as they, along with everyone else in the country, wait the 60 seconds for the gong that means the official start of the Hunger Games.

It starts with a shot of May Avriel from District 11. Her eyes flicker around the arena, and a small smile spreads across her face. Then the camera slowly turns to the right. Next to May is Frederik, who looks nervous, but still ready to run for the Cornucopia. Next to him, Phoenix is staring with a determined look at a pair of socks about five feet in front of her. Pip looks scared, and ready to run straight for the woods. So does Adrielle next to him. Bruce is eying everyone around him suspiciously. Destiny looks impatient and almost bored. She absently takes her hair out of its ponytail and puts it back up again. Simon and Jewel look ready to run for the woods. Emmanuel is looking around, probably for Sierra. Jasmine and Scorpio are right next to each other. Jasmine grins at him, while he just nods seriously. Fiona is leaning over, probably trying to see Felix around the Cornucopia. Cedar looks a little unsure about what to do, but is facing the Cornucopia. Roxy's got that signature evil smirk of hers. While most of the girls have their hair up, hers flows free, as always. River is braced to run into the fight. Clara and Tison are next to each other, looking ready to do the same. Sierra looks terrified; she's got Clara and Tison on one side of her and Marius on her other side. Marius, however, isn't paying Sierra any attention, his eyes pointed forward. Ella looks that way too, eyes trained ahead. Crunch is standing up straight, looking bored, almost as if he's ready to stroll into the bloodbath. Harmony's looking right at something a little ways in, but there's a lot of stuff, so I can't tell what she's looking at. Felix, like Fiona, seems to be looking for his ally.

And now, the camera has spun back around to May, and by now her expression has morphed into one less of relief and more of terror. There are only a few seconds left now! Here we go…

10…9…8…7…6…

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

The gong sounds.

Jasmine Welsh, 17, District 4

I dash forward. I focus on running as fast as I can, but I do watch out of the corner of my eye and take note as May, Pip, Adrielle, Simon, and Jewel all turn and flee right away. Phoenix grabs a pair of socks before escaping too. Six gone already. Seriously? Oh well. Many more victims to be had.

Speaking of which… I'm at the mouth of the Cornucopia, along with a few of my fellow Careers. I ignore them. They can do whatever they want. I grab a handful of knives and whirl around. I grin. It seems Scorpio leapt to the side and grabbed the boy who was on my other side: Emmanuel from 9. He's still struggling, but Scorpio's got him in a headlock. Good boy. Scorpio calls out to me, but I'm well on my way. I let one of my knives fly, straight into my first target: Emmanuel. I just made the first kill of the Games! Yay for me!

I turn. Who's next? Ah. How about Little Miss Harmony from 3? She's run in and gotten her hands on a thick coil of rope. I let another knife fly. She must hear or see it coming, though, because she twists to the side, and the knife embeds itself in her thick coil. She continues to run to the woods. Dang. I basically just gave her a free knife.

Oh well. We'll get them all eventually, even if it's not today. Although it seems we'll get at least a few today: I turn to see Tison take out Ella with his sword. Idiot. She should have run away like the others.

But there are still plenty more deaths to be had today.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

A whole line of us ran right for the Cornucopia. Ella already got taken out, but others, like River and Crunch, are getting stuff. I have a knife, myself. With his back to me, Crunch scoops up a bag and lifts his head, with that indifferent yet almighty look of his. I shake my head. He doesn't even notice me. As he turns toward me, my knife hits him right in the neck. He falls. As I grab the stuff near him and run, I do catch a glimpse of the Careers' surprised faces.

Yeah, that's right, kids. Respect the Roxy. Respect it.

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

I sprint for the Cornucopia right at the gong. I reach a pile of stuff at the same time as Frederik from 12. We get our hands on an ax at the same and fight for it. It starts as a tug fight, and then we're letting go of the ax with one hand at a time to throw punches. He actually puts up a good fight for a minute, but I can see him losing energy. Alright. He wants the ax? Fine. I swing it around and sink it into his chest.

I look around and see that there aren't that many people left. Time for my little plan. I see Destiny a few feet away, still digging through supplies. I lunge at her and get my arm around her neck. I have a knife, and I hold it to her throat. She struggles, but there's only so much she can to without me cutting her. She begins to scream for her fellow Careers, who all seem to be on the other side of the Cornucopia. Soon all five of them come running. Good.

"Don't come closer," I warn them. They stop. They know they'll lose Destiny if they make a move to hurt me.

Tison scowls. "What do you want?"

"A deal," I say. "I want you to let me get away without attacking me. I'm gonna back up to the edge of the woods and bring her with me," I say, gesturing at Destiny with my head. "Then when I get there, I'll let her go."

Tison frowns as I grab a few bags and tuck weapons into my belt. But he knows he doesn't really have a choice. "Fine," he says. "But if you harm her, you will die."

I nod. I don't doubt it. But I plan to do what I said. True to my word, I back toward the woods, keeping a firm grip on Destiny, who's forced to stumble backwards with me. When I get to the woods, I let her go. She whirls around, glaring at me, like she wants to attack me or something, but she doesn't even have any weapons. She just makes a little growling noise and stalks back out to the Cornucopia.

I did it. I'm free.

Sierra Reilly, 16, District 9

A few of us stayed on our plates when the gong sounded, waiting to see what's going on. I can see Fiona off to one side, Felix on my other side. Cedar waited on his plate, too. River ran in right at the gong, and he's still there. But then shrieks rose from the other side of the Cornucopia, and it was pretty clear that it was Destiny. Now all five of the other Careers are on that side, leaving this side open. Fiona and Felix both run around towards me, and they see each other. They both look so relieved. They grab some supplies and disappear. River finishes up and runs off too. Cedar seems to be ignoring me, so I sprint in, grab two packs, and run back out. I stop, turning, looking around for Emmanuel one last time, but I can't see him. He must have had to run into the woods before he could find me. I have to go, though. I'll find him as soon as I can. I run for the woods. The last thing I see when I glance over my shoulder is Cedar running away too, with three packs on his back. Luckily, he's running off to my left, and not towards me.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

Everyone else probably has run deep into the woods by now. But not me. I grabbed the pair of socks in front of me and ran just to the edge of the woods. I crouched down right there, and went to work. First I tore the socks into thin strips. Then I quickly wove these strips tightly together, forming a small but fairly strong rope. I've worked in the factory weaving room back home, which has clearly paid off.

Now I turn back to the clearing. I can't see the Careers, but I can see people grabbing supplies and disappearing into the woods. Cedar from 7 is the last one left, with three packs. And he's coming right towards me. Perfect. He enters the woods a few feet to my right. I silently creep after him. I can tell he doesn't hear me. I leap up behind him and tighten my rope around his neck. He flails and struggles for a moment, but I hold tight, and soon he falls to the ground. I guiltily avoid looking at his face and whisper a quiet apology to him as I take his supplies.

I feel awful, but there's something else I have to do. I stand and look up at the sky, letting some camera somewhere zoom in on me, and flash a confident smile. Ha ha, Capitol! And you all thought I was done for! Well, I just proved you all very wrong.

But I do feel awful about killing anyone. At least I made it quick. Because as much as I hate it, it has to be done if I want to survive. And I _do_ plan on surviving.


	8. The First Night

**_A shorter chapter today! This is the rest of the first day with people settling down after the bloodbath. I was gonna just have it be part of the bloodbath chapter but it has a pretty different tone so I figured I should separate it._**

May Avriel, 14, District 11

I've been running for hours now, judging by the light. Maybe not flat-out running the entire time, but for most of it. Either way, I've been on the move. I've seen edible food, but I haven't dared to stop long enough to eat. I'm not hungry anyway. Not yet.

I think I hear some sort of rustling and stop for a minute. The noise stops too. I freeze and start to panic. What if someone's been following me? What if this is the end? What if—

Someone steps out in front of me. I'm about to scream when I realize it's Pip. Thank Panem.

"Um, hi," he says awkwardly.

"Hi," I mumble. I feel a little guilty. We never really made a plan on how to find each other at the bloodbath, but I didn't even bother looking for him. I just turned and fled, leaving him in the dust. He probably saw which direction I went and has been trying to find me all afternoon.

"So… You left without any supplies?" he asks. I nod. "Me too," he says.

"Anyone hungry?" calls a voice. Roxy emerges from the trees. She smirks at our startled face. "Chill, it's just me," she says. "You guys make so much noise, you have no idea. I've been following you for a while. You're lucky no one's around." She plops down on a stump and opens a bag. "Who wants bacon?"

We look at her cautiously. I slowly step forward and take the food. She nods. "We're all allies, remember? Allies feed each other."

Soon she has a fire going. "Um… what if someone sees?" Pip asks cautiously. He's right; in the fading light, a fire will stand out.

Roxy rolls her eyes."No one's gonna bother us. And if they do, I'll fight 'em off."

It's not like I'm about to argue with her. And she's right; she offers a lot more protection than Pip and I could ever provide alone, even if she lights a fire.

Soon it's completely dark, and the anthem plays. All three of us look up to see the names of today's victims.

First is Cedar from 7. _What?_ That means _everyone_ from 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 all survived the day. That's so many! Next is Crunch from 8. _What?_ He was so strong! I thought he would make top 5 for sure. Next is Emmanuel from 9. _What?_ But what about Sierra? She must be so sad right now. Then both from 12. Okay, well that's not as surprising. But they seemed like nice people too.

I'm still happy. I can't believe I did it. I made it. I survived the bloodbath! Not only that, but I've got two allies, and one of them is really strong. And we're safe for now, deep in the woods.

"What a lame bloodbath," Roxy says. "Five deaths? Come on!"

"Maybe a lot of people wanted to be careful because of last year," Pip says. I realize he's probably right. Last year, seventeen people died in the bloodbath, leaving only seven. The top 8 interviews played on Day 2. But a lot of weaker fighters ran right into the bloodbath, and pretty much all of them died, leaving only the strong fighters. Anyway, it would definitely remind you to steer clear of the bloodbath if you can't fight—that's what Pip and I did, and now we're still alive.

"Yeah maybe," Roxy says. "But still. I think I saw three or four of those deaths happen. Apparently after I left, things slowed down a lot."

"What did you see while you were there?" Pip asks. Why would he ask that? I really, really don't want to know.

"Well, I saw Emmanuel get knifed. And I saw Tison take out that girl with a sword." She smirks. "And I took out Crunch myself."

I can see Pip's shocked expression, which probably mirrors my own. "How did you…" I try to ask her how she possibly did it without sounding too offensive.

She shrugs. "Like I keep saying, don't underestimate me. He turned his back on me, like I was no big deal, like I wouldn't dare touch him. Well, I did."

I'm pretty impressed. But I'm also pretty scared of Roxy. She could take Pip and me out so easily. But if she wanted to, I'm sure she would have just done it at the bloodbath.

"Alright, kiddies," Roxy says. "Time for bed. I'll take first watch."

Scorpio Monteigno, 17, District 4

The fire crackles warmly as we all sit around it. Tison took down a tree earlier, and we all helped saw it into three short logs, which are now placed in a triangle around the fire.

Jasmine and Marius come out of the Cornucopia. They've been in there pretty much all day, organizing our supplies. We have _a lot_ of stuff, so they pretty much had to empty everything out into the clearing, then pile it back up in the order they wanted.

"It's so nice out here," Jasmine says happily as she sits next to Marius on the last log. It is; the sky is clear and starry, it's not too hot or too cold, and a warm breeze flutters across the ground every now and then. We were thinking about going hunting, but then we decided to get our camp settled and just enjoy the night. Besides, Destiny wants to have "bonding time."

"Okay," Destiny says. "First of all, why did you guys volunteer?" She looks around, but no one says anything. "Okay, I'll start! I'm following in my sisters' footsteps. Well, except for the dying part. I won't do that!" She giggles, and then pokes Tison, who's sitting on the log with her, and looks at him expectantly. "What about you?"

He stares at her. "Why do you think? I've been training my whole life and now I'm here to win."

"Cool! What about you, Marius?"

"Same thing, pretty much."

Destiny nods. "Nice, nice. What about you, Jasmine?"

Jasmine laughs. "Uh… same as the guys, I guess."

"That's fine! Scorpio?"

"I want to let my parents retire and move into Victors' Village," I say.

"Oh yeah, I remember you talking about that in your interview!" Destiny says.

"Yeah, that's nice of you!" Jasmine says. I don't answer.

"Okay, Clara, why did you volunteer?" Destiny continues.

"I told you before, I didn't volunteer." Clara says.

"Oh yeah! But you're so skilled and stuff."

"Yeah, I've been training like a lot of kids from Two. But I never wanted to actually volunteer."

"Why wouldn't you want to?"

"Because… Alright, I know all six of us are confident that we can win, but the reality is that only one of us actually can. No matter how good you are, the odds will always be against you."

"Oh, Clara, such a downer!" Destiny says, laughing. It seems nothing can break her upbeat attitude. "Alright, next question. Um…"

"How about something that's actually helpful?" Tison breaks in. "I know I've seen you all use weapons in training, but let's go over your skills again. Just quickly tell me what your best weapon is."

"Sword," Destiny says happily.

"Knives," says Jasmine.

"Spear," I say.

"Doesn't matter. I guess a bow?" Clara says.

"Uh… I don't really have a favorite either. Maybe an ax," Marius says.

"Nice. And I like using clubs," Tison says. "Six different weapons. Not bad. We'll definitely be a real threat."

"Yeah, even without those losers who turned us down," Jasmine adds.

"I have no idea who you're talking about," Tison says smoothly. Jasmine laughs.

"Anyway," Tison continues, "It's good that we all have our own skills. We'll definitely need them, especially with so many people left this year."

Destiny grows serious for I think the first time ever. "Oh yeah. I'm really sorry about that, guys. So many people got away while you guys were busy trying to save me. I should have been able to fight that guy off myself."

"Don't worry about it," Marius says.

"Yeah, it's not like it'll be any harder for us to find them later," Tison says.

"I think it'll actually be more fun this way!" Jasmine pipes up. Wow. I'm surprised by how supportive everyone is.

"Alright. What else are you guys good at? Do you have any other skills that could be helpful?"

"I'm pretty good at climbing trees," Clara says.

"Oh, shut up, Clara, you're good at everything," Destiny says, rolling her eyes and smiling.

"That's good for spying, tracking, stuff like that," Tison says, nodding. "What else?"

"I can build," I say.

Tison turns and raises his eyebrows at me. "Really?"

"Yeah, sometimes my dad needs my help to repair ships."

"Wait, so what exactly could you build?"

"I don't know. But probably a small shed right next to the Cornucopia that we could sleep in."

I can see that all five of my allies are excited by that prospect.

"Well, Scorpio," Tison says, "You just became a valuable ally."

I just nod. But I _am_ pretty proud of myself.

"Alright, change of plans. Tomorrow we'll go hunting in small groups. When you're not hunting, you can stay here and help Scorpio build. Sound good?" Everyone agrees. "Okay. Time to get some rest, I think. For tonight we can lay out sleeping bags inside the Cornucopia. Who wants to take first watch?"

"I will," I say, wanting to keep up my good impression.

Tison nods. "Alright. Come on, I'll find you a spear." I follow him towards the Cornucopia.

"Help me up?" Destiny says behind me. I glance over my shoulder and see Marius sigh as he pulls her to her feet. Behind them, Jasmine and Clara are having a friendly conversation, too.

Tison pulls down a spear that's mounted on the Cornucopia wall and hands it to me. "When you get tired, wake me up next," he says, giving me a pat on the back. I nod and go back outside.

A few minutes later, the rustling noises coming from inside the Cornucopia have died down, and I'm sitting up on top of it, spear in hand, gazing out at the woods. I think back to past Hunger Games, when all the Careers were vicious, ready to turn on each other any second. But I couldn't be happier with this year's group. It's only the first day, and we're already acting like longtime friends.


	9. Day 2: Forming ties

**_Here's day 2! I think chapters will be broken up by day for the most part, and you'll get to see all the tributes every chapter. Also, I think at the end of every few chapters I'll do a recap of who has died and who's still alive and what they're doing just so it's easier to keep track. The first one will be at the end of tomorrow's chapter. Enjoy!_**

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

I watch May and Pip closely. They're still deeply asleep. Silently, I get up and walk deeper into the woods. I search for a while. I'm running out of time. It will be light soon, and they'll be waking up. I saw stuff yesterday; there's gotta be something… Here! I drop to my knees next to a patch of mushrooms. I recognize them from the edible plant station; their sticky stalks distinguish them. I pick a bunch, find some edible berries and a small stone, and hurry back to our little camp.

They're still asleep. I put the food into a little bowl from one of the backpacks I got yesterday. I take the rock and begin to mash it up. By the time Pip and May wake up, I've got a nice little mush ready for them.

"Morning, sleepies," I say. "I made breakfast."

I find a pretty big slab of bark and scrape some mush onto it. Then I give the bark to May, and Pip gets the bowl. "Alright, eat quickly. I wanna get going," I say.

"What about you?" May says.

"I already ate while you were sleeping, so now I can pack," I say. "Thanks for asking, though."

May nods, and she and Pip dig in. "What's in this?" May asks.

"Berries and mushrooms," I say shortly, zipping up a bag.

"Oh. Funny, it tastes—" she's interrupted as Pip suddenly freezes and then falls to the ground, mush splattering everywhere. Suddenly, it dawns on her. "You—" she says, looking up at me. Her face is horrified, but then she collapses too.

Two cannons fire.

I stand up, shaking my head sadly. "Didn't I tell you not to underestimate me?" I say. "Plus, it's like I told that Career girl—I work alone." I turn and walk away, the boom of the cannons still ringing in my ears. What a nice sound for the rest of the tributes to wake up to.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

I jerk awake as two booms ring out through the arena. Good thing I don't move too much, or else I would have fallen right out of the tree I'm perched in.

Oh well. I should be awake and alert, anyway.

I look down. All three of my bags are still there, laid out on the branch below me. I climb down to them, awkwardly manage to get all three on my back, and then slowly keep descending. I'm only now realizing how high up I was.

I reach a lower branch that's wide enough to lay stuff out in front of me. Then I finally look at what's inside the bags. I haven't opened a single one yet. Yesterday, I moved nonstop until the anthem played. I knew I had to stay on the move, especially because of my late start. And then I climbed this tree, and it was too dark to even check for food.

Now, I finally sort through it all. Three full bags is a lot to sort, especially in a tree. I only want to take out one or two things at once, to keep anything from falling. But finally, I see everything and sort it all. One bag now holds all my food; it's mostly just dried or canned stuff, plus a full bottle of water. Well, minus a few sips now. Another bag holds all my weapons: a bunch of knives, a bow and arrows, and a hatchet, although I tuck a few weapons into my belt. The last bag holds other supplies, like a small pan, a few empty bottles, and some rope. I also have a spear, which won't fit in the bag. I'll think I'll just bury that somewhere. I'm not good with spears, so it would just get in the way.

The one other thing I have is a blow dart. I hold it in my hands now, looking it over. I check the tube and see that there's only one dart left. Maybe there was just one to begin with. I smell inside and almost become dizzy from the strong, toxic smell. The dart is poisoned, just as I thought.

I'm about to tuck the dart into my belt when I freeze. I hear footsteps. I'm still high enough to avoid being easily seen, though. I look down and see the girl from District 9, Sierra, walking right under my tree. I put the dart to my lips. I'm pretty sure I could hit her from here. I breathe in. But then I freeze, thinking it over. Changing my mind, I put the dart back in my belt and watch Sierra walk away.

A few minutes later, when I'm sure she's completely gone, I climb out of the tree and set off in the opposite direction.

Sierra Reilly, 16, District 9

Luckily, I haven't seen anyone all morning. But I can't have been up for more than an hour. I have one backpack with some basic supplies, and I passed a stream yesterday. But I feel so vulnerable; all I have for weapons is one knife.

I walk for a while longer. I'm in an area of the arena with normal trees. They're probably oak or maple or something like that.

A small rustling noise catches my attention. I freeze, listening. Then, a small figure comes into view.

I'm taken aback. "Adrielle?" I say.

"Hi," she says quietly.

"Um… Hi."

She looks up at me and smiles. "So… Can we be allies?"

I'm taken aback again. Why would she want an alliance with me, of all people? I don't think I've even talked to her before. But…

I smile back. "Sure!"

She grins. "Really? Cool!" Her eyes flicker to my bag. She looks back at me right away, but I still catch it.

"Do you want some food?" I ask.

She shakes her head quickly. "No, no."

I sit down. "Come on!"

"Well… what else do you have?" she asks.

I show her my small amount of supplies. She takes my rope and my knife and disappears into the woods.

I sit and try to find something to do while I wait. I end up packing and unpacking my supplies a few times. Around half an hour later, I start to wonder if maybe she just took my supplies and left. But I snap out of it. Of course she wouldn't do that.

A few minutes later, she comes back, proudly carrying two whole rabbits. She plops those down, and then reveals that she also filled two of her belt pouches with berries. I'm impressed. That's definitely _way_ more than I could ever do in half an hour.

We deliberate and decide it's safe to light a small fire. She shows me certain leaves that will make thick smoke, and then a kind of leaf that makes almost no smoke at all. I'm not too happy that it's _almost_ no smoke instead of no smoke at all, but it's the best that we can do.

Soon we've got a nice fire, and two cooked rabbits. As soon as we're convinced that they're cooked, we put out the fire. Then we just sit and eat.

"So how did you catch these?" I ask.

"I set a snare-trap thing with your rope and knife. And I collected berries while I waited to catch stuff."

I nod. "That's pretty impressive."

She smiles again. "Thanks."

"So uh… you don't have any supplies?" I ask.

She shakes her head. "Nope. I ran away right at the gong." She points at my bag. "How did you get that?"

I tell her about the bloodbath, and how Bruce distracted the Careers, which allowed a lot of us to get supplies.

Her eyes widen. "Whoa. Maybe I should have stayed."

I shake my head. "Who knows what could have happened?"

She nods. She pauses, and then looks at me shyly. "Um, Sierra? I'm really sorry about um… your district partner. Emmanuel?"

I nod at the ground. "He was so nice to me," I say softly.

"Well…He's in a better place now, right?"

I shrug. "I guess so."

"Um…Well at least now we have each other!"

I manage to smile. "Right." I actually do feel better having someone on my side again.

She smiles back. "Alright. Want some more rabbit?"

So I force myself to push Emmanuel out of my mind and focus on what's happening now. I can't let memories of him put me in danger. Besides, he'd probably want me to move on anyway.

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

The Careers have been active since fairly early this morning. Some vanished into the woods, and the ones that stayed behind have been chopping down trees and sawing logs apart. I have no idea what they're doing, but I'm sure that no matter what it is, I won't like it.

I'm up in a tree at the edge of the clearing, watching them. I was thinking about moving away yesterday, and I did, until I found a source of water—there's a stream a little less than a mile away. Then I decided to come back here. I figure that the Careers will guess everyone's far away, so they won't suspect that I'm right here. Plus, it's good to be able to see what they're doing. But right now, there's something I have to do.

I slide out of the tree, taking my rope and my knife with me. I rub my rope in the dirt to make it less white. Then I saw it into four pieces. I set up each piece in separate trees, setting traps that are sure to catch something. Then I head back to my tree, climb it, and wait again.

Jewel Conroy, 18, District 7

This is awful. I found one little stream last night and drank a little from it, but I was dumb enough to lose track of where it is. And I haven't had anything to eat since yesterday in the launch room. Plus, I have no way of finding any food.

I wonder if this is how it will end for me. Will I stagger around for a few days, getting worse and worse, as I painfully dehydrate to death? I've never felt so helpless.

I walk around for a while more, looking for something, anything. But it's all the same—just trees. I do see a berry bush, but I don't recognize the berries, and I don't want to risk being poisoned.

Suddenly, a silver parachute floats down in front of me. I have sponsors? Since when? I catch it and tear it open. What is it? Food? Food?

It's a bow and a few arrows. Are you kidding me? You could probably buy like three or four meals for the price of this. True, I had some success with a bow during training, but not that much. Still, I wouldn't want to look unappreciative. I smile up at the sky, and then put an arrow in the bow right away, like I can't wait to try it out. I pick a nearby tree, aim for it, and shoot. The arrow flies past the tree and hits another one farther away. I nod and try to look satisfied, like this is where I was aiming in the first place. I pull it out of the tree and begin to walk again. It's time to go hunting. Or at least attempt to go hunting.

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

I've got a spear, a sword, and three knives, plus my survival stuff. I throw the knives at a nearby tree, keeping myself in practice. I throw the spear for a while and swing the sword around too. I haven't seen a sign of anyone since the bloodbath, and I'm getting uneasy. I should be fighting people. If I don't find someone soon, the Gamemakers will think I'm boring, and they'll unleash some mutt on me, and I'd much rather face a tribute. Besides, there are still seventeen of us, so I'd like to start narrowing it down or I'll be here forever. But for now, my plan is just to keep looking. I'll find someone eventually.

Felix Hendrix, 15, District 5

"So we've got a good amount of food and water left, but not too many weapons. Is that good or bad?" Fiona asks.

I raise an eyebrow at her. "Well, it's good that we have food and water, but bad that we don't have weapons."

She sighs and gives me a little push on the arm. "Okay, okay." She zips up the last of our three packs, and we stand up so we can get going, since we just finished our small meal.

Just as we're about to move, a small boy steps into view. It's the boy from 11. I think his name is Simon.

Fiona instinctively pulls a knife and points it at him. Simon throws up his hands. "Please," he says. "Look, I don't have any food or weapons or anything. I'm gonna starve. So I was hoping I could join you guys and be your ally. If not then… just make it quick." He tenses up, waiting.

Fiona sighs. "We're not gonna kill you," she says. We aren't? I mean, not that I wanted to, but I didn't think we really had a choice. "But if you're gonna be our ally, are you gonna be able to help us in some way?"

"I think so!" Simon says quickly. "I'm pretty smart. I could help you recognize edible food, and I can help you with strategy and stuff."

She narrows her eyes. "If you can recognize edible food, why are you starving?"

"I can recognize it; I'm just bad at finding it in the first place."

"Fine." She pulls out a small pouch of dried fruit and tosses it to him. "Only eat as much as you need."

"I know. Thank you!" He gobbles down a few handfuls. "Um… Do you have any weapons I could borrow?"

She shakes her head. "Can't help you there. We barely have enough for two."

"Well that's fine! Thanks for the food, anyway."

"We were just about to get going."

"Okay. Which way?"

I point in the direction we were headed before, and we start to walk.

We've only gone a few steps when the boy from 6, River, jumps out in front of us. He's breathing hard. "I wouldn't go that way," he says. "Careers are in that direction. And they're coming this way."

Marius Sweeney, 18, District 2

"Ah, zhhhh—"

I yank my hand back, automatically putting my finger in my mouth.

Destiny's head pokes around the corner of the little house we're building. "What happened?"

I shake my head. "Just hammered my finger again," I mumble.

Her eyes widen. "Is it okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

"Good. So are you gonna make dinner soon?"

"Uh…I'm kinda busy right now," I tell her.

"Well, it's getting pretty late. Shouldn't you be done by now?"

"Huh, yeah, I should. Funny though, I thought I'd have more help."

"From _me?_ Excuse me, but I've been busy doing stuff."

"Like what?"

"You know, keeping watch, organizing supplies, deciding what I want for dinner, that kind of thing."

"No one needs to keep watch, I organized the supplies yesterday, and once you decide what you want for dinner, _I'll_ have to make it."

"You know, I really don't like your attitude," she says coolly.

"_You_ don't like _my_—"

"Destiny!" Jasmine calls. "Look what I figured out!"

Destiny skips over to Jasmine.

"So, if you take this charcoal stuff like this… and grind it up like this… and dunk it on this oil… you can use it as eyeliner!"

"Oh my Panem!" Destiny squeals. "Put some on me!" I can't believe these two.

"Hey, Marius," Scorpio says, poking his head over the edge of the roof where he's sitting. "Do you know when Tison and Clara will be back?"

I smirk. "Why, are you getting tired of being alone with these two too?"

He frowns. "No, I just want to know when they're coming back because that's when we'll have dinner."

I sigh, turning back to my hammering.

"...So do you know?"

It's all I can do not to roll my eyes. "No, Scorpio, I don't know," I sigh.

We work for a little while longer, and then Tison and Clara run out of the woods, panting.

"What happened?" Jasmine asks, coming over with Destiny.

"There was a group of four. We chased them for a long time, but we didn't have any distance weapons, and we'd been walking for a while. They got away." Tison says.

"Who was it?" I ask.

"The girl from Five, and the boys from Five, Six, and Eleven," Clara says.

Tison stares at her. "How do you know that?"

She shrugs. "I paid attention I guess."

"Well yeah, me too, but to know all of them from a distance—"

"So can we have dinner?" Destiny cuts in.

Tison gives her a smirk. "Of course." He looks at me. "Is it ready?"

"I was working on the shed all day."

"Well, start cooking!"

Soon we're sitting around a dying fire, done eating. The anthem plays, and we look up to see Pip from 3 and May from 11. They must have been the two cannons early this morning.

"So tomorrow we can hunt a lot more," Tison says.

"And I can make the shed roof waterproof," Scorpio says.

"Alright," Tison says. "I'll take first watch. You guys should go to bed."

Adrielle Harper, 14, District 6

We're just about to climb a big tree for the night when we see the silver parachute.

"Who do you think it's for?" I ask.

Sierra shrugs. "You can open it."

I grab it and open it to find five silver disks.

"Your weapons!" Sierra says excitedly. "Here…" she walks over to a tree and points to a spot on the trunk. "Could you hit this?"

I stare at it, aim, and throw. The disk sinks right into the place where she pointed.

She widens her eyes as I work the disk out of the tree. "Wow," she says. "I know you said you were good, but… I didn't know you were _actually_ good."

We climb a tree and find two branches next to each other. She watches me put the disks away. "You know, if you wanted to, you could be a real killer with those," she says quietly.

She's probably right, but I shake my head. "But I don't," I say. "I don't want to be a killer."

_**This wasn't one of my favorite chapters so far, but people are still getting settled and setting up alliances and stuff. More eventful stuff is coming on day 3!**_


	10. Day 3: Breaking ties

**_Here's the first half of day 3!_**

Marius Sweeney, 18, District 2

The sun is going to rise soon. If I'm going to do this, I have to do it now.

I slide off the Cornucopia, where I've been keeping watch. I already had the pack I wanted up there with me, plus an axe and a spear. I glance at the new shed where my allies are sleeping, and then run for the woods.

"Leaving so soon?"

I skid to a halt and turn to see Clara walking towards me.

"No, I just, uh… I thought I heard—"

She rolls her eyes. "Relax. I'm not gonna do anything."

I frown. "Really?"

She nods. "I saw how you were yesterday. You really don't like them. I get it if you wanna leave. I'm not a huge fan of them myself, actually. I just don't think it's a good idea to leave this early in the game. But if you want to, I have no reason to stop you."

"So if I leave, you won't tell them which direction I went or anything?"

She shakes her head. "That would get me in just as much trouble for letting you go."

I nod. "Alright. I'm trusting you."

"Hey, we're district partners, remember?"

I smile. "Right. Okay, well thanks. I owe you. And um… good luck."

She just nods, and turns back towards the shed. I watch her for a few more seconds, then turn and run.

Adrielle Harper, 14, District 6

Drops of water trickle onto my face. I slowly open my eyes. Sierra's already awake, of course, because she was keeping watch.

"We should probably just start walking," she says, looking up at the rain that's just started.

"Ugh, in the rain?"

She gives me a friendly slap. "Yes, in the rain!"

I give a big eye roll. "Fiiiiiine…"

Soon I'm marching through the woods, with Sierra trailing behind me.

"Hurry up, slowpoke!" I turn around and grin at her.

She laughs. "Why? Where are we even going?"

I shrug. "I dunno. I just know that wherever we're going, I'm gonna get there way before you do unless you hurry up!"

She sighs. "But I'm tired!" She tries to sound like she's whining, but she still has a smile on her face.

"Excuse me, young lady, but you really need to stop acting like a child," I inform her.

She raises her eyebrows and points to herself. "_Me?_ Excuse me, but I happen to be two years older than you."

"Well by the way you're acting, I could barely tell," I say arrogantly.

"Hey!" she pokes me. Then she looks around. "But really, where are we?"

"I don't know, miss I'm-two-years-older-than-you. Shouldn't you know? You _are_ the oldest, after all."

She sighs. "Alright, alright. We can just pretend we're the same age, okay?"

"Fine."

She laughs again and keeps walking.

I look ahead of us and freeze, grabbing Sierra to make her stop too. She looks at me. "What?"

I point up ahead. "I know where we are."

She looks up ahead and gasps as she sees it too.

We must have gone in a circle. We're back at the Careers' clearing.

Scorpio Monteigno, 17, District 4

I'm woken up by drops of water hitting my face. I look up and realize that, just my luck, there's a hole in the roof right above my head. I'll fix that today. Wait a minute. There's dim sunlight coming through the hole; it's almost morning. Marius should have woken me up for my turn to keep watch almost an hour ago.

I'm closest to the door, so I slip outside without bothering anyone else. A quick look around tells me Marius is gone. I grab a spear and run to the woods. I don't know exactly what my plan is, but I need to find him.

I pause at the edge of the woods, looking for signs of him. Then, I tense up, listening. Yes, I definitely hear something. It's coming from off to my right. It sounds like two hushed female voices.

I take off in that direction, and the voices stop, replaced by sounds of running footsteps. But they're not fast enough. I only need to run for a short while before I catch up enough to see them: it's a pair of girls, a smaller one with brown hair, and a taller one with blond hair. I have no idea who they are; I never really paid attention. But that doesn't matter; I'll find out when their names appear in the sky tonight.

I'm still a fair distance away when I see the smaller one trip and fall to the ground. The blond doesn't notice at first and keeps running, until the girl on the ground calls out to her. She stops and whirls around, but there's nothing she can really do as I advance on her ally. The girl on the ground desperately starts to do a little backwards crabwalk away from me, while fumbling with something at her belt. I slowly come towards her with my spear.

"Adrielle!" The blond calls out. She's crying. "Throw it! Please!"

I look down to see the girl, Adrielle, pull out a stack of metal disks. Whatever, I can just take my spear and—

But I don't have time to do anything as a disk comes flying straight into my chest.

Sierra Reilly, 16, District 9

The boy falls backward, and a cannon fires almost immediately. And then we run. We only go a short distance, though, before we dart up a tree. We go as high as we can manage, before we stop and sit on a branch. I'm still shaking.

Sure enough, the Careers come running. They must have known which way he went because of footprints or something.

Tison's roar tells us they've found the body. "He was brilliant with that spear! He was going to fix our roof! And now he's gone after two days? _Who did this?_"

"Maybe… maybe one of the ones who turned down being in our alliance?" a girl suggests. It sounds like the blond from 4.

"Uh…Yeah or um… Well, yeah it was probably one of those three." That must be the redhead from 1, trying to be helpful too.

"Well whoever it was, they use metal disks," says the girl from 2. Chills run down my spine. They figured it out.

"Look," the girl from 2 continues. "It's still here." Oh no. It is. It wasn't like we were gonna pull it out.

"Wait," Tison says. "That girl. _That girl._ She did this. I knew we shouldn't have underestimated anyone." His voice rises to a roar again. "Spread out! Find her!"

Footsteps follow immediately. The blond goes right under our tree.

The next half hour is possibly the scariest part so far. We want to climb higher, or run away. I want to scream, too. But we can't move. We're helpless. The only thing we can do is hope they don't find us.

Finally, I hear the girl from 2 again: "Tison." He voice is surprisingly close. I look way down to see her standing with Tison right under our tree. "We can't find her. She must have gotten away. Let's go back."

He whirls around on her, but she has a sword out and pointed at him in seconds. "Stop," she says, with a surprising amount of authority in her voice. He growls and stalks away.

We force ourselves to wait a while longer to make sure they're not coming back. Then we scramble out of the tree and run for a long time. I don't know about Adrielle, but I'm still on an adrenaline rush. Finally, I collapse, panting. Adrielle falls next to me. I pull out our two water bottles and take a long, deep drink from one, and then hold out the other to Adrielle, but she just looks away. She isn't panting like me; instead, she just looks drained. She crawls over to a tree and lies down in front of it. She's out in seconds. I can't tell if she's asleep or passed out. Even in sleep, she looks anxious, scared, and angry. Last night, she looked peaceful, both when she was asleep and awake. I let more tears fall down my face. We've only been through two days, only seen one death, and this is the state we're in. There's no way we can keep going like this.

Jewel Conroy, 18, District 7

I'm starving. And not starving as in being very hungry; starving as in starving to death. I hunted all day yesterday and this morning, and I haven't managed to catch a single thing. I'm okay with this bow, but I haven't had any practice with moving targets. I rarely even see animals, and when I do, by the time I set up my bow, aim, and fire, they've always run off. I'm starting to feel dizzy. I haven't eaten since two days ago, besides a few berries here and there, and I'm feeling the effects. I'm also feeling paranoid. I only have one weapon, which I'm not too skilled with, and I'm weak from hunger. If I run into any other tribute, I'll die for sure.

I stumble into a tiny clearing and see a small patch of mushrooms growing at the foot of a tree. Food. Slinging my bow over my shoulder, I crouch down, pull one out of the ground, and put it to my lips.

"Stop!"

Instinctively, I whirl around and fire an arrow at the direction of the voice. The boy ducks, but he didn't need to; the arrow misses him by a mile. Panting, I stumble to my feet and glare at this boy, who I realize is Marius. Marius the Career. Oh no. Well, I won't go down without a fight. I pull out another arrow and get it ready. He holds up both of his hands.

"You're being pretty hostile to someone who just saved your life," he says. I frown, but don't lower my bow. He points. "Those mushrooms? They're really poisonous. Even one would have killed you the second you swallowed it. Granted, it would make a pretty painless death, but I figured you would want to know."

I hesitate. "Why?" I ask.

"You mean why would you want to know?"

"Why did you save me?"

He shrugs. "You seem like a smart girl. You have a lot of potential in these Games. Eating a poisonous mushroom would be a lame way to go, don't you think?"

I'm still holding up my bow. "Where are your allies?" I ask.

"They're not my allies. Well, not anymore. I left."

"Why?"

"Can you put down your bow and then I'll tell you?"

I frown. "How do I know I can trust you?"

"I guess you can't know for sure."

I hesitate, but then I slowly lower my bow.

He sits, takes off his pack, and holds out a can of vegetables. I eye it unsurely, but then I take it, sit down, and dig in.

"I thought you were hungry a lot in District Seven," he says.

"We were… We are."

"Well, you just seem really unused to being this hungry. You know, taking any food so eagerly like that."

"In District Seven, we get a full night's sleep, at least a _little_ food a day, and don't deal with the physical stress of running into murderers all day," I tell him.

He raises his eyebrows. "Touché."

"What?"

"I just… Oh, you've never heard of… Well, it means good point."

I shake my head. "Weird."

"Nah, just… Well, yeah, kinda weird."

I crack a smile. "So… You still haven't told me why you left your allies."

"Oh yeah. Well basically… Okay, looking back, this sounds really stupid, but I just didn't like them. Destiny and Jasmine treat this whole thing like it's funny, like the deaths aren't real or something. It's sick. Tison's your typical killing machine, bossing us all around. Clara was okay, but she didn't talk much. And Scorpio… I don't know, we just didn't get along that well either. So I actually didn't leave them for strategy or anything, I just didn't like them."

"No, I get it, they sound awful," I say. "But no offense, during training and stuff it seemed like you fit right in with them. You volunteered and everything, right?"

"Yeah."

"And you've trained for this your whole life?"

He nods.

"But then… Why?"

Marius sighs. "It's been drilled into me ever since I was little. _Marius, you are going to volunteer when you're eighteen._ That's just the way it's always been. At the academy, they picked me when I was sixteen and started training me specifically to volunteer two years later. It was always, volunteer and be happy, don't and face a life of shame. Losing never even came in as a possibility. But I started questioning it when I was around fifteen or sixteen, if this was really what I wanted for myself. But at that point there was really no choice. If I gave up on volunteering, I would be disappointing my family, my friends, pretty much everyone I knew. Plus if I stopped training, I wouldn't know what to do with my life. Training became my entire life's purpose."

I've been looking at the ground in thought. Now I look up into his face. "That's really, really sad. I… I'm sorry."

He smiles darkly. "Doesn't matter. I'm going to escape that life soon, no matter what happens."

"That's terrible! Don't think like that! The fact that you view your life like that, you think everyone will see it as a waste if you die… It's sick actually, that you've been raised like that. And your parents wanted this for you too?"

"They pushed for it every step of the way."

"WHY?"

"I wish I knew."

"…Is everyone like that in your district?"

"Not everyone. Not me. But a lot of people are, yeah."

"What about other kids your age?"

"They either hated me because I got to volunteer and they didn't, or they admired and respected me for being such a hero," he says bitterly. "Even my friends. They all just hung around with me because I was the cool guy. I was so cool for throwing my life away. For spending my entire life preparing to sign up for an early death!" He slams his fist into the ground. He sits there, fuming. I wait until he slowly looks up at me.

"It's not thrown away," I say softly. "You could still win. You're stronger than pretty much everyone. And then you can go home and start a real life, and try to forget about the Games. You wouldn't even have to mentor; District Two has so many others. You could try to forget."

"I wish I could. You make it sound so simple. But I can't. Every part of me and my life is aimed at the Games. I can't ever just forget about it."

"You could try."

We sit in silence for a while. Eventually he gives a little snort and shakes his head. "I can't believe that just happened. Me, the boy who is destined to win, the glorious victor in the making, who fit right in with the classic Careers. Suddenly I've left the perfect allies and before I know it I'm sitting here spilling out my entire life's fears to a girl I don't even know. I wonder what they're thinking back home."

"Knowing the Capitol, they'll cut a lot of this conversation. You just criticized the Games pretty hard."

"Good. I don't need the shame from back home."

"Maybe they deserve to hear it," I say. "Maybe then they'd see how messed up their view towards the Games is."

"Maybe… You know, I've never talked about any of that to anyone. No one would understand. And how would I know if you would understand either? I don't even know you. I honestly don't know why I saved you. A normal Career wouldn't have."

"You've proven you're definitely not a normal Career."

"Really? Well… Thanks. This is so weird."

"Well it's weird for me too."

"It is?"

"I'm the loner from District Seven. The only other tribute I've talked to is Cedar, and he's gone now. I'd completely pushed aside the possibility of interacting with anyone, besides fighting them. And now not only am I having a civil conversation, it's with none other than the ruthless Career from District Two, who's shockingly left his allies out of nowhere, saved my life, and told me his entire life's story."

"Huh. Okay, yeah I have. Your turn."

"What? My life story? Well there's not that much to say. I'm an only child and my parents died two years ago. Now I reach out to other people and do what I can to help them."

"So… You live alone?"

"Yeah. I bet you can't imagine anything like that."

"Living by myself, no. But I know exactly how it feels to be alone, like no one's there to listen to you."

"Guess we're really not that different."

"Yeah, and neither of us wants to be here either. I'll tell you one difference, though: I deserve to be here, and you don't."

"No one deserves to be here."

"I do. I spent my whole life too afraid to stand up for myself. I could have just not volunteered. But I did. And now I'm here. That was my choice. But you seem like such a good person, always helping people even though you've lost so much yourself. And now you're expected to fight to the death? You deserve to be here probably the least of everyone."

"Like I said, no one deserves it."

"Well, at least now we can protect each other."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I say. "What?"

"We can work together." He hesitates. "You want to be allies, don't you?"

"I do, but… I can't. You probably don't remember my interview, but I said I really don't like to get too close to anyone anymore. I used to be so close with my parents, so when they were taken away from me, it hurt a lot. And we know for a fact that one of us will have to lose the other eventually. I just… I can't."

"If I don't win, then I think you deserve to. Don't you think we should protect each other?"

"We all deserve to win. There are still two young girls, and tons of us have younger siblings, and older siblings and parents, who are all praying we come home. So actually, I deserve it least, because I have no family to go home to."

"Jewel… Please."

"I told you, I—you know my name?"

He looks surprised. "Of course."

"But…"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I don't know, it's just… I'm nothing special, you know?"

"Yes you are. I promise." He looks at me sincerely. "Allies?"

I slowly shake my head. "I still can't."

He frowns. "You know, that's another difference between us. We're both lonely, but I go out looking for people to keep me from being lonely. But looks like when people reach out to you, you push them away."

I turn my back on him.

"So… You really want me to walk away?" he asks.

There's a long pause. _No,_ I think to myself. _No, I don't. I want you to stay with me and keep me safe._ "Yes," I force myself to say. "Please just go." My voice almost breaks. _Before I change my mind,_ I think.

I hear him start to move towards me, but he stops, probably realizing there's nothing he can do. "Well… Alright. Goodbye," he says, and I hear him slowly turn and walk away. He walks slowly, probably hoping I'll call him back. But I don't.

_**Woo! The rest of day 3 next chapter!**_


	11. Day 3 continued: Stirrings

_**Here's the rest of day 3! There's also a review of all the deaths and remaining tributes at the bottom of this chapter.**_

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

My spear thuds into the ground, spearing another rabbit. I'm getting sick of eating these things already. I smile at my perfect throw. Then I want to laugh, remembering those Careers' faces when they first saw me throw. I was alright with the knives, too. And then they actually thought I would join them. What a joke.

I don't get why they're so surprised. The Career districts aren't the only ones with military schools, you know. I smirk again, thinking of my mom's angry face as she informed 12-year-old me that she'd put up with me long enough and was sending me away. She had me signed up for military school a week later. The pathetic part was that she didn't even really send me away. Sure, I was at school all day, but I still slept at home, and on the weekends I had to help out with the cows. I preferred school to home. At least they respected me there. I was the best in my class with pretty much every weapon.

Anyway, now I'm here, and it's a breeze thanks to all that training. There have been eight deaths so far, and three of them were because of me. So I can pretty much take it easy, and just take down whoever I come across. I've got these Games in the bag.

Simon Rolofan, 15, District 11

"Lunge! Now block! Block, block, block!" Fiona yells. I growl in frustration as I try and fail, once again, to block Fiona's sword. Of course, she doesn't actually hit me, only pokes me, but I'm still frustrated. "And remember, don't be afraid to use both hands," she says. "Ready to try again?"

"Nah, let's take a break."

"But Simon! You were just starting to get better!"

I laugh. "Don't lie. I know I wasn't. Maybe I can try a different weapon after… uh, our meal," I say, not knowing whether to call it lunch or dinner.

I sit with Fiona, Felix, and River in a circle as River passes out some mush. Felix wrinkles his nose. "What is this?" he asks.

"I call it, uh… berry surprise," River says. Felix eyes his portion skeptically, but Fiona scoops up a chunk in her hands and drops it in her mouth.

"It's good!" she says.

"Hey, that's surprising! It actually _is_ berry surprise!" Felix says. River elbows him. "Hey."

"So what is it?" I ask.

"I found three kinds of berries, mashed them up, and heated them over the fire, which is why it's warm. Oh, and I added some of those leaves over there," he says, pointing.

"Are you sure it's not poisonous?" I can't help asking.

"I spent an hour at the edible food station each day during training," he promises.

Fiona swallows and says, "Okay, so, we put this off yesterday, but now we need to talk about it. We all know that the Careers will be looking for us now that we've gotten away once, so what are we gonna do when they find us again?"

"Well… Running seemed to work pretty well the first time," I say hopefully.

"They'll be better prepared this time," River says. "They'll have long-distance weapons, and they might even find a way to surround us. We'll probably have to fight."

"Okay, well, Fiona should have the bow, River should have the sword, and Simon and I will have knives?" Felix suggests.

"I'm not good with knives," I say.

"What _are_ you good with?" Felix asks.

"Nothing," I say angrily.

"Well we'll all just have to teach you," Fiona says. "I say we pick knives as your weapon and you stick to learning just that. We can all help you." River and Felix nod in agreement.

I think for a minute, but I don't really see any other options. "Okay," I say.

"So here's the other thing," Fiona says. "It's pretty much guaranteed they'll attack us eventually, right?" We all nod. "So they'll have the advantage because they'll be prepared. So maybe we should find a way for _us_ to attack _them_."

We all frown at that. "I think it's a good idea," River says, "but I don't see how we could surprise them."

Fiona thinks for a minute. "Okay, here's what I think we should do. We go to the edge of the woods near the Cornucopia and set up our tent. Then we hide. We either make a noise or just wait for them to find the tent themselves. They'll think we're inside, and while they're all watching the tent, we jump out and attack."

We think it over. "I like it," River says. "The one problem is that if we set up right next to their camp, we're guaranteed to draw all of them into the fight. Six trained Careers against four untrained non-Careers is pretty bad. If we're out here, it will probably only be some of them."

"Well we can spy on them first. If all six of them are still going strong, we can always leave. Sound good?" Fiona asks. We nod, even though I'm not too sure about this. "Okay. So I guess once we finish eating we should start heading back that way. We probably won't get there until tomorrow anyway."

"So… Who's still left besides the four of us?" River asks.

"The six Careers. The girls from Three and Six… and Seven, Eight, and Nine. And both from Ten."

"So seventeen left," Felix says.

"No, wait, there was a cannon this morning," I say.

"Oh yeah. Who do you think that was?" Fiona asks.

"I don't know. I could be pretty much anyone," River says.

"So there are sixteen of us left," Fiona confirms.

"A third of us gone in two days…" Felix muses.

"That's actually not that bad. Most years, around half are gone just from the bloodbath," Fiona reminds him.

"Oh yeah. How many bloodbath victims were there again? Five? Man. I don't think it's ever been that low."

"Well the Careers were distracted this year," Fiona says.

"Wait… What happened?" I ask.

"Oh yeah, you weren't there. That big guy from Ten grabbed one of the Career girls—"

"Destiny from One," River interrupts.

"Yeah. I couldn't really see, but he had a knife to her throat. He dragged her to the woods and then let her go when he got there."

"Which is a really risky thing to try, but actually a pretty good idea, now that I think about it," Felix says.

"Yeah. Also I think more people ran away than usual, which could be why more people lived," River says.

"That could be because of last year. Didn't seventeen people die on the first day?" Felix asks.

"Oh yeah! That was crazy! But yeah, it would definitely remind a lot of people to avoid blindly running in if they can't fight," River says.

"Can you imagine doing something like that? Like, I waited until the coast was clear, and I was going to leave if things looked to dangerous," Fiona says.

"Although, who knows? This plan we have with the Careers could be just as big a mistake," Felix says.

"Oh yeah… I feel like it's a good idea, but I guess you never know," Fiona says. "We'll just have to see."

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

I've been walking all day, but I saw everything this morning: Marius leaving, Scorpio running into the woods, the cannon going off, and the Careers returning as a group of four. I have a fairly good idea of who died, although I'm surprised that there weren't more cannons afterwards: I would expect the Careers to take their revenge. Maybe the killer was lucky enough to escape. But when I saw Tison's rage, I knew he would be out for revenge soon, and would brutally murder anyone he came across. So I decided to make sure I'm not anywhere near him. After I saw the remaining Careers go back into the shed, I waited for a few minutes, but no one came out, so I slipped out of my tree with my knife, gathered my four ropes and a newly caught squirrel, and headed off, away from the Careers' camp, with a new destination in mind: I'm going to the redwoods.

Now, I can see them ahead of me, their bright trunks almost unnaturally red. Soon I'm in their midst, and they tower over me. When I look up, I can't even see the tops. To some, this place might be sinister, but to me, it feels sheltering. I sit down and cook my squirrel. The tightly packed trees stretch as high as the smoke goes, concealing where I am. Once it's cooked, I put out the fire, scatter the sticks to get rid of the evidence, and keep walking.

Up ahead, I can see one of the biggest trees of all, with massive branches stretching out in all directions. They're too high for me to climb up to, but the huge roots branch all over the place too, most of them sticking out above the ground. Some of them form little cave-like nooks. I choose a little cave that looks safe and curl up with my meal, set to stay here until at least tomorrow morning.

Clara James, 17, District 2

"Ha! Ha! R… Bah!" Destiny's energetic sound effects continue as she pokes her sword against my chest. I can beat her at just about any other weapon, but the sword is Destiny's specialty.

"No, no, see, you gotta use some nontraditional moves. Take them by surprise, you know?" she says.

I smile and roll my eyes. "I tried that. You blocked me anyway."

She grins. "Oh yeah. Guess my reflexes are a little too fast—" I lunge suddenly, but Destiny's sword appears out of nowhere, blocking it again. "So like I was saying…" she says, laughing. Then she sees my small frown. "What?"

I shake my head. "It's just weird, you know? We're sitting here having a fake sword fight in the middle of a real life fight to the death. Either one of us could kill the other one at any second if we wanted to. I don't know. It's just weird."

"I don't think it'd be that easy. We could cause an injury, but then the other person would see what's happening and fight back. Plus we both know that killing our ally would be a really stupid thing to do at this point. The others would find out and gang up on you. That's why Marius is a real idiot, if you ask me."

"You think he left us?" I ask carefully.

"Well yeah! Why else would he be gone?"

"I don't know. Maybe he saw someone and he's tracking them or something."

"And he couldn't take two seconds to wake someone up before he left? No, he's gone."

"Yeah, you're right. I guess I just don't want to believe it, you know? It seems like such a weird thing to do."

"And stupid. But we'll find him eventually. And then he'll realize how stupid he was."

"Yeah, Tison was pretty mad."

"Not as mad as he was about Scorpio though, dear lord of Panem! I thought he was gonna go on a rampage and kill us all. That's happened, remember that guy two years ago?"

"Three years ago."

"Whatever. Didn't he, like, freak out and kill all his allies?" I nod. "Yeah, it almost seemed like he was gonna do that. But we could take him, right?"

I smirk. "Of course we could."

"I feel bad for Jasmine, spending the whole day with him. She better be nice to him, or both from Four will be gone in one day." She looks around. "Shouldn't they be back by now?"

I look up. "It won't be completely dark for a few more hours. With him this mad, he'll probably want to hunt for as long as possible."

Destiny nods. "Well, at least we found something fun to do while we wait!" she says, pulling out her sword. "En guarde!"

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

I watch the Career girls go at it again. Man, they're good. I could never beat them in a fight like that. But maybe I could if they were weakened somehow. The Careers are by far my biggest threat, so I decided to come back and watch them, and see if I can spot any weaknesses. But as I perch in a tree watching these two girls battle, I know that so far, I'm only finding more strengths. I don't know how long I'll be here watching them, but for now, I have nowhere better to go, so I think I'll stay here for a while.

So far, I feel like the Games have gone pretty well for me. I got a ton of supplies and managed to take someone out while avoiding the bloodbath. Even better, my strategy to seem weak worked. The audience now knows I'm strong and they've seen me kill, but no one in the arena knows. And that's exactly how I want it.

But now, watching the Careers, I'm realizing I have more problems. If I make it to the final few people, there are bound to be strong fighters remaining, like these two. Sure, I can fight, but not like this. I watch as Destiny leaps over Clara's sword as Clara takes a low swipe.

Maybe I could take them if they were injured. I have to find a way to weaken them while avoiding fighting them. But how?

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

I'm getting restless. I haven't seen evidence of anyone at all since the bloodbath. I don't like the false sense of security. And judging by the spread out cannons, most of the other tributes have been keeping to themselves too. I really wanted there to have been more deaths by now. There are still so many opponents left to deal with. And if I don't run into someone soon, the Gamemakers will interfere. And I do not want to face a Mutt or some other kind of danger, and then have to fight right after that. But at this rate, with everyone lying low, the Gamemakers will be stepping in soon. I hope they wait a little longer, just long enough for me to find someone. I promise that no matter who it is, I'll fight them, and I'll win.

Marius Sweeney, 18, District 2

I stand behind a tree and watch as Jewel pulls back and releases the arrow again. It's even more off-target than her past few have been. The rabbit she was aiming for scampers off. I guess the more she misses, the more aggravated she becomes, and the more aggravated she becomes, the more likely she is to miss. She stomps along until she spots another fat bird sleeping in a tree. She stops, takes a deep breath, and draws back another arrow. I can't take it anymore. I creep up behind her, and just as she's about to release the arrow, I tap the bow, pushing it a little more to right. Jewel doesn't even see her arrow hit the bird cleanly through the heart; she's too busy whirling around to come face to face with me.

She stares at me, not knowing what to say. I speak instead: "I'm sorry. It's just really aggravating watching someone shoot again and again and make the same mistake every single time. I had to help."

She glares at me.

I slowly walk over and pick up the fallen bird. "Look," I say. "You got it that time."

She just stands, glaring.

I walk back over to her and hold out the bird. "Uh… Here."

"You followed me? All day?"

I nod hesitantly.

Out of nowhere, she reaches up and slaps me across the face. "How do you think it feels to know that, huh?!" she shrieks. "Anyone could stalk for days and apparently I would have no idea! So first you don't leave when I tell you to, and then you watch me getting madder and madder with my awful hunting and you wait _hours_ before you bother to help?!"

"I… thought you wouldn't want me to come back," I say meekly.

Suddenly, Jewel knocks the bird away and kisses me. I'm in complete shock for a few seconds before I find myself kissing back.

After what seems like forever but is probably only a few awkward seconds, Jewel pulls away. She looks like she's about to cry.

"What?" I ask.

"I just… I missed you."

"I missed you too," I say, picking up the bird.

Soon we're sitting by a fire, this time next to instead of across from each other, dividing the juicy bird between us. The sky has darkened, and soon the anthem plays, showing Scorpio's face in the sky. We look at each other, surprised.

"What do you think happened?" Jewel asks.

"I don't know. Maybe Tison got mad that I left and took it out on him. I hope not! I would hate for his death to be my fault," I say. Jewel nods. "That's why I couldn't leave you, you know. If you died, it would be my fault for not protecting you." She hugs me. We stay like that for a while.

"Shouldn't we put out the fire? It'll stand out in the dark," Jewel says after a few minutes.

"I don't care," I say. "I'll fight off anyone who comes." I hold her close. "I'm here to protect you now."

**_Ahahaha I hope that last scene wasn't as awkward to read as it was to write! I like the two of them together but it turns out I need to work on writing about feelings. Anyway, here's a recap of what everyone's up to if you need it:_**

**_District 1: Tison (1 kill) and Destiny- still in the Career alliance at the Cornucopia_**

**_2: Marius- in the woods with Jewel; Clara- with the Careers at the Cornucopia_**

**_3: Pip: poisoned by Roxy; Harmony- hiding in the redwoods_**

**_4: Scorpio- killed by Adrielle; Jasmine (1 kill)- at Cornucopia_**

**_5: Felix and Fiona- on way back to Cornucopia with River and Simon_**

**_6: River- with Felix, Fiona, and Simon; Adrielle (1 kill)- in woods with Sierra_**

**_7: Cedar- killed at Bloodbath by Phoenix; Jewel- in woods with Marius_**

**_8: Crunch- killed at Bloodbath by Roxy; Phoenix (1 kill)- edge of woods spying on Careers_**

**_9: Emmanuel- killed at Bloodbath by Jasmine; Sierra- in woods with Adrielle_**

**_10: Bruce (1 kill) and Roxy (3 kills)- looking for people in woods by themselves_**

**_11: Simon- with River, Felix, and Fiona; May- poisoned by Roxy_**

**_12: Frederik- killed at Bloodbath by Bruce; Ella- killed at Bloodbath by Tison_**


	12. Day 4: Even if it Kills Me

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

Sunlight slowly lights the arena. Though most of the tributes are still asleep, I, once again, have already been up for a while. I sleep in the middle of the day, moving around and hunting mostly at night. But not for food; oh no, I have plenty of that already. I'm hunting for people. But so far, I haven't seen anyone. I'm seriously thinking about finding the Careers, just for something to do. But even though they know I'm strong, they can still fight. They're probably still a group of five. Although after that death yesterday, maybe their group has split. That would be great, but I know that's still very unlikely at this point.

Honestly, the best word to describe myself at this point is bored. Or maybe restless. I want to fight and to progress further into the Games. When it comes down to the finals, that's when it will be exciting. At this point, though, there are still a ton of weaklings. Bo-ring. I think back to the Careers. Although none of them seemed to be particularly likable people, I know I probably would have fit pretty well into their alliance. But I know better. Alliances only lead to betrayal. People turning on one another. I don't need to deal with any of that. No, it's better to work alone.

I'm also happy to realize that I probably have the highest kill list. Sure, it's only three, and sure, two of them were little kids, but to the Capitol, it's still the highest number, and that's all that matters. Besides, even those two easy kills at least showed that I'll kill anyone, and that I'll stop at nothing to win this thing. Hello sponsors.

But so far, I haven't received a single sponsor gift. Not that I've needed one. Still, it would be nice to get a gift anyway. Moral support and all that.

So basically, I just walk, with nothing better to do. I'm itching to find another competitor. Then, I can raise my kill list, and lower the number of obstacles that are still in my way of emerging as victor. I can't wait to find someone. _Soon,_ I promise myself. Soon.

Tison Maxwell, 18, District 1

The arena grows brighter as the sun fills the sky. The four of us emerge from our shed, blinking in the light. We've given up on having someone keep watch. We know no one would come to the Cornucopia while we're sleeping a few feet away, and even if they did, we would hear them, and even if they got away, it wouldn't matter. We have so many supplies, we know we'll be fine, and whoever it was wouldn't be able to hide from us forever.

"So what's for breakfast?" Jasmine asks.

"I can make eggs," Destiny says quickly. Those two are still on edge. I still haven't finished cooling off from yesterday.

"I'll help you!" Jasmine says, and they scurry away. Clara and I watch them go. I shake my head. "They're so scared," I say.

"I know. But hey, if it means they'll be more helpful, it's fine by me," Clara answers. I nod but don't crack a smile.

We all gather to eat breakfast. "Today, we're going to find someone," I say, glaring at them all. "Right after we eat. We'll spread out, we'll each hunt alone. I want us covering as much area as possible, and I better hear some cannons today. I want a report from each of you when we get back. If you haven't got anything, you better not come back until you do." The others nod. I give them one last glare. "If you don't put someone else's name in the sky, then it will end up being your own."

Felix Hendrix, 15, District 5

"They look so scared," Simon whispers, peering at the Careers.

"Yeah, you can tell Tison's really mad about something," Fiona says. We back away and put a little distance between ourselves and the clearing so we can talk.

"Well, they're down to four. That's a surprise," River says.

"Yeah. But, I don't know about you guys, but I still don't want to fight them, even if it's only four," I say.

"I don't think they'll hunt as a group," Fiona says. "But if they do, we can hide. Maybe three of them will leave to go looking for people, and then we can draw the fourth one over. We don't have to do anything until it looks like we have an advantage."

"Alright, so we should go back and see what they're doing," I say. We creep back to the edge of the woods and watch. We see them finish eating, gather weapons, and split up. Clara heads into the woods across the clearing from us. Tison goes way off to our right. But Jasmine enters the woods a short distance to our left, Destiny a short distance to our right.

"Quick, hide around the tent just in case," Fiona hisses, and we scamper back to our camp. Fiona and I dart up trees, Simon crouches in a thick set of bushes, and River goes into the tent.

We wait in tense silence for about five minutes. Then we hear footsteps. They grow louder and then pick up speed, and then Jasmine comes into view; she's spotted our bright orange tent. She slows as she nears it, and creeps up to the tent's door, clearly assuming there's someone sleeping inside. Suddenly, River's sword bursts through the entrance, cutting a hole in the material. Jasmine screeches and leaps back just in time, the tip of the sword missing her chest by inches.

Seconds later, Fiona leaps out of her tree, landing squarely on top of Jasmine. Jasmine's knife flies out of her hands as Fiona wrestles her to the ground. They grapple there for a while, giving River enough time to scramble out of the tent. He's about to jump into the fight when there's a whistling noise. He ducks as a spear sails over his head. It's Destiny, who apparently heard the noise and came running. She pulls out a sword as River approaches her with his sword out too, and they begin to duel. She's not grinning and laughing as she had been when I saw her dueling during training, but the fire in her eyes is the same. Now, instead of flailing around happily, she glares at her opponent fiercely, keeping her movements as small and precise as possible.

But River is skilled, too. He's less experienced, so he may not be as good at tactics and thinking as quickly, but he's stronger. He slams his sword against hers, forcing her to pause repeatedly as she's forced to grip her sword with both hands, pushing back as hard as she can. But she's fast; she gets around his blade every now and then, and slashes are starting to appear on his arms and legs. But he fights back, cutting her when she's not strong enough to stop his blow. He manages to cut her across the cheek. She pauses, feeling the blood run down her face in horror, then lashes out with twice the intensity of before.

Fiona began with the advantage, catching Jasmine by surprise, knocking the wind out of her, and ending up on top, but Jasmine is gaining. As they struggled, she slowly got her breath back, and finally, she punches Fiona in the face. Fiona hesitates, stunned, and Jasmine takes the opportunity to roll her over, ending up on top. She's about to start beating her up, but I think it's high time for me to step in. I leap from my tree, grab Jasmine from behind, and pull her off. Fiona quickly stands, pulling a knife from her belt. I do the same, and Jasmine pulls out two. The three of us fight, but it soon becomes clear that even though it's two to one, it's a fairly equal match.

Simon's still in the bushes. I guess he doesn't know what to do. I'm sure he wants to help, but everyone here is better at fighting than he is.

Suddenly, Jasmine lunges out and slashes me across the stomach, and I collapse, trying to stop the blood flow. I look up the see River hit Destiny's hand, cutting it and causing her to drop her sword. She stares at him in shock. He hesitates, but begins to advance.

"Jasmine!" she shrieks.

At that moment, Simon, seeming to panic, jumps out to help. As he does, Jasmine turns, seeing what's happening, and hurls one of her knives at River.

It would have hit its mark, if Simon hadn't leapt out right as the knife flew. Instead, the knife hits Simon directly in the chest. He freezes, looking slightly stunned, before he falls.

A cannon fires.

All five of us stare at the fallen body, slightly stunned. Fiona and River have the sense to snap out of the trance first. River slashes Destiny across the stomach, and Fiona stabs her knife into Jasmine's shoulder. They both make little squealing noises before stumbling away, back towards the Cornucopia and their treasured medical supplies.

River and Fiona approach Simon's body, watching him silently. There's nothing for them to do. They can't even close his eyes or anything respectful like that. Even from here, I can see that he looks peaceful, like he could be sleeping. Except for the knife sticking out of his chest.

"I… I guess we should take the knife out," River says quietly. Fiona nods, but neither of them moves. Fiona turns away, a sob escaping her. I look away as River crouches down to remove the knife. I hear him mutter a goodbye. He and Fiona then approach me; I'm still on the ground, and I can barely move from the pain. I look up and see two things appear. One is the hovercraft, which we all avoid watching as it takes Simon away. The other is a silver parachute. This we open, finding a first-aid kit. Fiona and River quickly wrap me up in a bandage, covering up the wound, which luckily isn't too deep.

After I'm taken care of, Fiona and River patch up their own wounds. Fiona collapses on the ground next to me, tears falling down her face. River takes down the tent, cleans the knife, and packs up the first-aid kit and the weapons.

"Guys?" he says quietly, turning to us. We look up at him unhappily. "Look, I know you just want to sit here for a while. I do too. But we have to move. Once the Careers are patched up, they'll be back. We have to get away."

Slowly, we get up and begin to move. Of course, we'll never completely escape what's just happened.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

I jump awake at the cannon. I'm getting really tired of waking up to that sound each morning. But at least it means one less competitor, one step closer to home. I sit up in my tree and peer at the clearing, but I can't see anyone. Did they leave to go hunting already? They must have. Actually, they probably caused the cannon. There's no sign of them. Maybe all four of them left. Actually, if I wanted to, I could invade their camp, but I dismiss that thought quickly. I have plenty of supplies, and probably a few sponsors. Plus, someone could be inside the shed or the Cornucopia. It's still too dangerous, and not at all worth the risk. But maybe there's someone else who's more desperate for supplies. I decide to spend the day here, watching. If anyone raids the camps, they probably won't face a Career, but they'll have to face me.

Then, I see Destiny and Jasmine stagger into the clearing, find their medical supplies, and hastily patch themselves up. Then they sit and begin to wipe blood off of their weapons. I smile. Sure, they have clearly done some damage to someone, but not while keeping themselves in perfect shape. Apparently, with the right tactics, these Careers are beatable.

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

I'm on the move once again. I quickly realized that I can't stay in the redwood forest. My rope traps are my only source of food, and the branches here are too high for me to set them. By now, the trees have shrunken down again, returning to the simple pine, oak, and maple trees of a typical forest.

Because I don't want to aimlessly wander around, I choose a destination: I decide to go to the willow section. The willows will offer concealment and good places for traps, anyway.

As I walk, my thoughts begin to stray to home. But I quickly push those thoughts away. I can't become weak or emotional now. My family needs to motivate me, not weaken me.

I'm brought back to reality by a slow, mechanical hissing noise. Without waiting another second, I drop to the ground, where I feel safer. Then I look around and see the source of the sound: a little square of bark on a nearby tree has slid to the side, like a sliding door. A small hole is now visible, revealing that the trunk inside is hollow. I stay on the ground, waiting for something else to happen.

Suddenly, a dart flies out of the tree and straight over my head. It hits another tree, and the area of bark around the dart immediately turns black. The dart is clearly poisonous.

I stay on the ground, not feeling safe. Another tree slides open, but this time the hole is a little lower. Another dart fires. Soon another one flies, this one even lower. I know what will happen eventually.

I lie flat on my stomach and begin to army-crawl as quickly as I can. Soon hundreds of darts are flying over me, some almost rustling my hair. I keep my head as low as I can without burying my face in the ground, and keep crawling.

After what feels like forever, the darts slow and become less frequent. Finally, they stop. I keep army-crawling for about ten minutes, just in case, and then cautiously rise to a regular crawl. After a while of this, I carefully stand up. No hissing or any signs of more darts. Then I run. When I'm far away from the area, I slow to a walk. For the first time since the beginning of the Games, I actually look like a fighting tribute and less like a little girl who's been hiding and keeping herself clean and safe. I'm covered in dirt and sweat and grass stains from crawling on my stomach, my hair is a tangled mess, and I'm panting hard. But at least I'm safe.

I find a small river and get in, cleaning myself off. Once I'm clean, I get out and resume walking. Soon I reach the willows. I slow down, realizing that anyone could be nearby, and I wouldn't see them through all the low-hanging branches. Sure enough, after creeping through the trees for a while, I see the shape of someone's back, hunched over a small fire. I freeze, staring.

Bruce.

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

I'm on edge. I've been searching and searching, and STILL no tributes. I honestly don't understand why the Gamemakers haven't sprung something on me yet. I know I'm boring. All I've done so far is walk around, catch food, find shelter. It's like I'm on a camping trip. The only remotely interesting thing I did was my little trick at the bloodbath. I know that it ended up allowing a lot of people to get away. So there are still a lot of people left. So it should have been easy to have found someone by now. WHERE ARE THEY?

Finishing yet another rabbit, I put out my small fire and set off at a fairly fast pace. I'm going to find someone. Even if it kills me.

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

I remain frozen as Bruce gets up. Luckily, he sets off away from me. I watch him loudly stomp through the forest, looking angry. I realize that he would be pretty easy to follow. And that he has a lot of supplies. And that it would be easy for someone else to find him and to fight him, because of his loud feet. Keeping my distance, and making sure to remain out of sight behind the tree fronds, I begin to follow him.

Adrielle Harper, 14, District 6

"Look! I caught some kind of rodent! Do you think we can eat it?" Sierra asks. I shrug without looking at it. "Come on, Adrielle. You didn't even look." I still refuse to look up.

She sits down and begins to light fire. "So… you're still upset about… Scorpio?"

I finally look up. "Upset?"

"Well… Yeah."

"I killed someone. He is dead because of me."

"He would have killed us if you didn't!" Sierra says.

"That doesn't make it okay. He's dead. Maybe if we were smart enough to keep away from the clearing, he wouldn't have seen us, and he would still be alive right now."

"And then he would have killed other innocent kids, and probably died anyway."

"Did you see his interview? He wanted to help his family. Now they've lost their only son, and their lives aren't going to get any better for it. I hope they know I'm sorry."

"Of course they do. You were only defending yourself."

"But… A week ago, I was this innocent fourteen-year-old. I went to school every day, I had three best friends. Now I'm a murderer. Why is this happening?"

"I wish I knew."

"When I was reaped, I just accepted that I was gonna die. I just hoped I would die peacefully, maybe while protecting someone else. I never imagined I would kill anyone."

"Adrielle. Sure, it's not completely Scorpio's fault. But it's not your fault or my fault either. It's the Capitol's. You know that."

"I just…" I frown. "No. I was gonna say I just want to go home, but not anymore. I don't want to go back after this. I met all these kids, and a lot are already dead. And, what, fourteen more need to die? I can't be the last one left. More people have to die for me to go home. Let's face it, that includes you. I don't want to win. I couldn't take it."

Sierra's crying. "I wish we could both go home," she says, "but you're right. We can't. I… I don't know what to do."

I put words to the decision that I realize I've been coming to all day. "You're going to win," I say, sounding stronger. "I'll stay with you and protect you so that you can win, and you can go back to your sister. She needs you."

Sierra is already shaking her head. "I can't let you do that."

"I've given up, Sierra! I'm not gonna win, and I don't want to! So don't try to save me!"

"I just wish… things were different."

I look away. "Me too."

Jewel Conroy, 18, District 7

"So remember what I told you. String, stance, shoot. Got it?" Marius asks.

I nod. "Okay. String…" I string an arrow and pull back. "Stance…" I square my shoulders and adjust my aim. "Shoot." I release the arrow. It flies just to the left of the tree I was aiming for.

"No, look," Marius says. "You're still shooting too far to the left every single time." He stands behind me as I string another arrow. He holds my extended hand beneath his, and uses his other hand to hold up my bent elbow. "Now try."

I let go. The arrow flies straight into a tree across from us. I let out a little squeal and give him a quick hug. He laughs. "What?" I ask.

"That was just such a movie moment."

I frown.

"What?" he asks.

"I've never seen a movie," I say.

"What? Never?"

"Besides the propaganda film on reaping day, no."

"Oh. Really?"

"Really."

"Well, there are really overdone love movies, and there are always really ridiculous scenes when a guy comes up behind a girl to show her how to do something and basically ends up hugging her, which is pretty much what I just did."

"Oh. Well, it helped me learn."

"Yeah. Who knew?" I nod. "So you've really never seen an actual movie?" I shake my head. "They're really cool. I'll have to take you sometime."

I tense up. I try to block out the insanity of his words, the reminder that they bring. I quickly change the subject to distract myself. "Well, thank you so much for teaching me. Maybe now I can actually help you find food."

Marius smiles. "I had a lot to work with. You were good already; you just always shot too far to the left, like I said."

"Yeah, I noticed that after you told me. But it's really not that hard to shoot straight. I just needed someone to explain it more clearly, I guess."

"Well, I'm proud of you."

I smile. "I'm gonna keep hunting."

"Don't go too far!" Marius calls happily as I disappear into the trees.

About half an hour later, as the sky is getting darker, I return. I'm empty-handed, but I'm smiling. "There was a bird in a tree, and I shot right at it. It flew away, but if it stayed still for a second longer, I swear I would have hit it. I'm getting really close!"

Marius grins. "Tomorrow then. Tomorrow you'll actually catch something."

"Really? Even if we have to hunt all day?"

"We won't though. You're way too close. You won't take all day."

I smile and sit down next to him. "I'm excited. I don't really know why. It's not like it's that big a deal."

Marius pulls me closer. "It _is_ a big deal, though. You should be proud of yourself."

"I am! And you should be proud too; you're such a good teacher!"

He laughs.

I frown. "What?"

"Listen to us. 'You should be proudest.' 'No, _you_ should be proudest.' We're like… like those typical couples that are like 'no, I love _you_ the most."

I'm silent for a minute as we lie down for the night. Right before I fall asleep, I turn and stubbornly whisper, "I love you the most."


	13. Day 5: On My Own

**_Day 5! Things are heating up! Have fun!_**

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

I peer through the branches, watching Bruce wake up. I slept restlessly all night, not wanting him to leave without me noticing. I watch him sling his pack on his back and set off, walking away, with his back to me. I wait a few more seconds, and then slide out of the tree, continuing to follow him.

I really don't know why I'm following him; maybe it's mostly for something to do. If I look busy, maybe the Capitol won't spring anything on me. However, I have to be careful; the Gamemakers could turn him around and force us into a fight. I'm relying on the fact that they know it would probably be a really short, boring fight, so it's probably more interesting for Bruce to have someone following him. Still, I know I'm taking a risk.

After walking some more, we reach the edge of the willow forest. Bruce hesitates. He pulls out his water and sips, probably still thinking. Apparently making a decision, he keeps going, continuing on into the regular woods. This section consists of mostly pine trees. I'm glad; the pine needles under my feet muffle my footsteps and make it easier for me to remain unnoticed.

I think back to the Games I've watched in the past: how innocent, scared kids were forced into brutal battles and tortured deaths. My time in the Games has been nothing like that. The only remotely exciting thing that's happened to me was the incident with the darts yesterday. I've mostly just been walking around the woods, setting traps. But the traps are meant for animals, not people. I frown. It wouldn't be impossible to adjust the traps so that they would work on people. But I couldn't do that. I don't want to kill anyone.

But the Gamemakers certainly want me to.

Clara James, 17, District 2

"What are you doing?" Tison growls, glaring into the Cornucopia.

I sit up in my sleeping bag. "I just… I slept out here."

"Was I not clear," Tison begins clearly, "that if you haven't killed anyone yet, don't come back?"

I look at him. "No, you were clear."

"And did you kill anyone yesterday? Because I'm pretty sure you didn't. So why are you back? Thought you could sneak back and camp in the Cornucopia once we were all asleep in the shed, and it would be fine? Well guess what. It's not fine."

I frown. "That's funny, because if I remember right, there was only one death yesterday. And I'm guessing it was caused by Destiny or Jasmine, or both of them, because why else would they be back. Which means… oh hey, how many people did _you_ kill yesterday?"

He glares at me. "No one's in the part of the woods I went to."

"Same here. So we're both okay. Fair enough?"

He just frowns.

"Face it Tison. There are only Careers left. Two of them are ditzy girls who think this is fun. If I leave, the alliance will crumble."

"What if I make you leave right now?" he says, pulling out his sword.

I grab a sword propped up on the wall. "Fine." I advance towards him, and he backs quickly out of the Cornucopia, giving himself more space. I lunge, and he blocks, hard. Then he swings, and I block. Over and over. We're equally matched.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

I watch the fight from my perch in the trees. The career alliance is definitely crumbling. They'll split up soon, if not today. I watch Tison roar with anger. While he's distracted with his roaring, the District 2 girl slashes his arm, creating a red gash that begins to bleed. Tison roars again and charges. I raise an eyebrow. They might actually kill each other. Just then, the blond girl runs out of the shack, followed by her redheaded friend. They look at each other, quickly mutter something, and run back inside, returning seconds later, the blond carrying a knife and the redhead carrying a sword. The redhead runs around behind the distracted Tison, and nods at the blond. Then she raises her sword and brings the hilt down on Tison's head, at the same time that the blond hurls her knife, hitting the District 2 girl's sword and knocking it out of her hand. I raise an eyebrow again. That girl is quite the thrower.

The District 2 girl slowly picks up her sword and hangs it back up in the Cornucopia. Tison slowly stands, slightly dazed. He whirls around on the little redhead, but she has her sword ready, holding it inches from his chest. I can see her muttering words to calm him down, while the District 2 girl seems to be apologizing to the blond. I want to make some kind of frustrated noise, but of course I have to keep quiet. Clearly, these Careers don't want to fight yet. Either Tison or the girl from 2, or both, must have just briefly lost his or her temper. But now they're calming down, returning to a peaceful alliance. Well, that's a pain. I'll have to wait longer than I thought I would. They probably won't be breaking up any time soon. If only I could find a way to speed things up.

River Dartmouth, 16, District 6

"Come on, Fiona, eat something."

Fiona slowly takes the meat I'm offering her and takes a small bite, chewing it up for a long time before swallowing. Then she just stares at the bird leg unhappily.

I sit down next to her. "I uh… I think Felix's stomach looks a lot better already."

She nods.

"So we can probably move a lot more today."

"That's good," she says monotonously.

I frown. "Fiona… I know you're still upset about what happened yesterday, but it had to happen eventually, right? We all knew that."

I hear her sniffle.

"No, don't…" I put my arm around her, and she leans her head into my shoulder, crying.

"You're right. And it's gonna happen again, and I… I don't want it to. I want all of us to just stay safe, and we can't. I'm just… I'm just scared."

I don't say anything—there's nothing I can really say since she's right.

Felix lifts his head from where he was sleeping. "What's…? Aw Fiona!" he says, crawling over. He sits on her other side, awkwardly rubbing her back. We stay like this for a while, until she calms down and lifts her head. "Sorry," she says quietly.

"It's okay."

"Why don't we uh… Why don't we get going?" she suggests.

"Right," Felix says.

"I'll put out the fire," I say.

We start clearing away the evidence of our camp, while Fiona tries to forget her moment of weakness.

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

I freeze. I swear I just heard footsteps. I whirl around and watch a rabbit hop across my path behind me. I growl in frustration. I keep hearing animal noises, but still no tributes.

I keep walking for a while, pausing at a stream to fill up my water container.

After a while, the ground changes from a layer of pine needles to a stretch of mud. I step right in, my feet sinking in a few inches. I glance over my shoulder to see that I'm leaving some very defined footprints. Fine, someone can come find me if they want.

I trudge through the mud some more, but then I freeze, hardly daring to believe what I'm seeing: footprints right across my path, clearly defined in the mud. From the way they overlap, I can tell they're from more than one person. This is either an alliance or someone following someone else. Either way, I'm following them.

The prints are clear enough that they have to be from today. They point to my left, so I immediately turn, my pace quickening from the excitement of finally finding something. Sure, it might take an hour or two to find them, but I will, soon.

Adrielle Harper, 14, District 6

I haven't been eating.

"Come on, one wing," Sierra begs.

I give the same reply I've been giving for a while: "No, more for you."

"I don't want more if it means less for you!"

"Same here."

"Adrielle, please."

I take the wing but don't eat it.

She sits down. "I'm gonna sit here and watch you eat it."

I still don't move.

"One bite, something, please?"

I take a bite, chew, swallow. The meat's dry in my mouth. It tastes like dirt.

She looks at me sadly. "You're really not gonna eat more," she says. It's not a question.

"No," I say anyway.

"I just hope it's not because you're worried about me. Look, we have a whole bird right here. I'm not gonna starve if you eat one wing."

"It's not because of you."

"Why then?"

"I'm just not hungry anymore."

Fiona Hayden, 15, District 5

River returns, carry two dead rabbits, just as Felix finishes lighting a fire. We cook them and eat in silence. We've been walking all day like we planned, but now we're taking a break for our afternoon meal.

Once the rabbits are gone, Felix and River take apart the fire, while I retreat to the packs. I stare at the packs for second, and then make the decision. It's time.

Felix and River finish with the fire and walk over in time to see me zip up one of the three packs and sling it onto my back. I let out a quick huff of air and turn to face them.

"Is something wrong?" River asks when he sees my facial expression.

I take another deep breath. "I've decided… I have to go."

"What?"

"You can't!"

I square my shoulders. "I have to."

"No you don't," River says pleadingly.

"Yes I do," I say quietly. "You saw what happened with Simon. He was our ally, which made his death ten times harder for us. And that whole thing was my plan. I feel like he died because of me."

"That's not true—"

"I can't handle that guilt again, River! And the longer we stay together, the harder it will be to split up or to handle each other's deaths. We all know that two of us have to die. If it's you guys, I don't want to be there and feel like I could have prevented it, and if it's me, I don't want you guys to feel guilty."

They just stare at me sadly. They must know I'm right.

"I just… you guys are important to me," I mumble. Then I turn and walk away.

River calls my name once. It's killing me to know how easily I could turn around and run back to them. I really want to. It takes all of my strength to keeping walking away and not look back. And just like that, I'm on my own.

Marius Sweeney, 18, District 2

"I love the smell of pine, don't you?" Jewel says happily.

I inhale deeply. "Mmm, yes."

I smile happily watching Jewel walk beside me. We've only been together for a few days, but she's changed so much. When I found her, she was scared, but also closed off, lonely, maybe even a little mad at the world. But now she's opened up, and she's always smiling and laughing. She's a whole new person.

She grins up at me. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"I'm gonna do it today."

"Do what?"

"Catch something all by myself!"

I laugh and smile. "I'm so proud of you! Why don't you do it right now?"

"Okay then!" She grins and turns to the woods, slinging the bow over her shoulder. "I'm gonna be back so fast, you'll be so surprised."

"How can it be a surprise if you just told me?"

"Shut up!" she says, laughing. Then she turns and disappears into the trees.

I drop to the ground, and absently trace a stick in the dirt, my mind wandering while I wait for her. Now that I think about it, she might actually be able to do this. She's been improving so quickly. I glance up at the sky, squinting a little in the light. It's beautiful.

No more than twenty minutes later, she returns with a triumphant smile on her face. I grin back as I see the rabbit she's carrying.

My grin wavers as I see something change in her expression, as a frown crosses her face, as the frown changes to fear, and as I feel the knife plunge into my back.

Bruce Turner, 17, District 10

The boy in front of me falls forward as I give a triumphant grins that's ironically similar to what the girl's was a few seconds ago. But like the girl, my few seconds of triumph end when I look up as see the girl staring at me with an expression of pure deadliness.

Something happened to me in the last few days. Something about being here made me violent and deadly. I've always been tough and strong, and since I've been here, there hasn't been a second where I wasn't determined to win, but something went wrong. I've been blindly stumbling around, desperately trying to find someone to fight, while forgetting that besides surprise ambushes, I know next to nothing about fighting to the death.

Now I remember. I turn and run.

Jewel Conroy, 18, District 7

Something happened to me in the last few days. I guess some people would call it love. I don't know what I would call it, but I do know that I was in a trance. Marius and I can't be together. I've always known that. Even before the Games, I used to always say that especially in a country like ours, with so much pain and loss, you can't become close to anyone. You'll only be hurt in the end. But somehow in the arena, I forgot.

Now I remember. I run.

This boy may be fast, but I'm faster. I sprint after him, and when I'm close enough, I skid to a stop as I pull out an arrow.

String.

Stance.

Shoot.

I was taught well. My arrow hits its mark, and the boy falls to the ground. I'm already turning and running back as a cannon fires. But I don't know who it's for.

Marius is lying on the ground, coughing hard, but still alive.

I hit the ground next to him. "I killed him," I pant. "I killed that boy. It's okay. You're okay." I grab his shoulders and look into his eyes. "You're okay."

But he's not. He coughs harder.

"Marius! No, no, sit up, you're fine. He's gone, Marius! We're fine!"

He shakes his head. "Now…" He's struggling to speak. "Now you can win." He gives me a weak smile. "And you caught your rabbit."

"No, no, you're going to win, Marius! You are! We can fix it!"

He reaches up a weak hand and puts a finger to my lips. "Shhh. It's okay." He turns his head. "Hey," he says. "This is where we met." I glance up and see that we're back in the small clearing with the same patch of mushrooms, the same trees.

Tears begin to fall from my eyes.

"Hey now, no need for that," he whispers, reaching up again to brush them away.

"I love you, Marius," I say. I lean down and kiss him. A few seconds later, his body tenses up. He pushes my face back and looks into my eyes. He stares at me, giving a weak smile, until his head slowly falls back.

A cannon fires.

"No," I whisper. I fall onto him, sobbing. "Stay with me! Come back!"

A hovercraft appears a short distance away. It's taking Bruce. Then it will come for Marius.

"No!" I scream. "You can't take him! He needs to stay with me!" I roll over, and my eyes land right on the mushrooms.

_"Those mushrooms? They're really poisonous. Even one would have killed you the second you swallowed it. Granted, it would make a pretty painless death…"_

I grow numb, and make a decision. Slowly, I crawl over. I pick one. Then I crawl back.

I guess he can't save me from these after all. I bend over. "I won't let you leave without me," I hear myself whisper. I kiss him one last time. Then I pull back, taking in his face. I lie down next to him, resting my head on his shoulder. I put the mushroom in my mouth, put my arms around him, and swallow. I close my eyes and smile peacefully.

Maybe I was wrong about people. Maybe if you find someone you care about, it's better to stop worrying about who gets hurt and just to be with them while you can. Because right now, I feel no regret.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

I lift my head. That's the third cannon in a row! Well, that clears out a few more people. The sun is setting, so I only have to wait a little while before I find out who the cannons are for. Not that it really matters.

I sit on the ground, absently sharpening a knife. Trees aren't really my thing. They're a pain to climb, they're less comfortable than the ground, and what's the point anyway? No hiding for me.

Soon the anthem plays. I look up. First is the boy from 2. I raise an eyebrow. _Another_ Career? Man, they're dropping like flies this year. Wimps. Then the girl from 7. Huh. Okay. She was a boring one anyway. And then… My district partner. I mentally shrug. He didn't really mean any more than any of my other competitors. When it comes down to it, he was just another person in my way of winning. So what if we lived somewhat near each other?

How many people are left now? Four Careers. The girl from 3. Both from 5 and 6. The girls from 8 and 9. And me. Twelve.

Well, that's annoying. Some years, the pool shrinks to twelve just from the bloodbath. Oh well, at least we're at the halfway point. I frown. Come to think of it, we're pretty far along now. I want my sponsor gift. And there _was_ this one particular thing that I kept telling my mentor about over and over. And now I want it.

I look up at the sky. "Hey. Hey mentor people. Can I have my sponsor gift now? I know I don't _need_ it, but come on, I'm bored!"

I watch the sky for a minute, but nothing appears.

I sigh. "Alright. If you'd rather give it to me in the morning, that's fine. But please give it to me by then! As a halfway present? Please?" I smirk. "And thaaaank yooouuu," I add in my sinister, singsong voice.

**_Whew! Sorry if this chapter felt a little rushed, I don't have an explanation, it just kind of came out that way. But I hope you liked it!_**


	14. Day 6: Down in Flames

_**Day 6! I think I mentioned this before, but I actually started writing this story around a year ago, and so far, I've just been rereading and editing what I had already written, but as of this chapter, I've caught up to where I left off a year ago! So now I have to actually finish writing out the story myself, which means chapters take longer to write, which means I might not be able to post every single day. But it will still be at least every few days! The end.**_

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

I'm still in shock about yesterday. It all happened so fast. I was keeping my distance when suddenly, I heard voices. And then Bruce turned around and ran right towards me. I was barely able to dart behind a tree in time. But even if he saw me, he probably wouldn't have stopped—he was clearly trying to get away from something. Then the girl from 7 was running too. She stopped a short distance from me and fired an arrow, and suddenly, Bruce was dead. The girl left, and I took Bruce's supplies. But then there was another cannon, and then the girl was screaming, and then there was a third cannon. I crept over, waiting to see if someone had killed them and was still around. But then I saw the knife in the boy's back, and I knew it was the long one Bruce had been carrying. And then I saw the girl sleeping peacefully next to the boy. She clearly wasn't breathing. And then I saw the mushrooms.

I freaked out. But somehow through my disturbed state, I managed to whisper some kind of goodbye to them, and then I took their supplies. But now, I'm wondering if that was disrespectful. No, I don't think it was. If I'd left the supplies, someone else would have taken it eventually, and maybe that someone would have been a killer. I'd like to think that maybe the dead tributes would have wanted me to have it. I probably need it the most, since I have no supplies and can't hunt, only set traps.

I have the traps set up now. I'm still in the pine forest, and I'm back up a tree, looking through my new supplies. From Bruce, there's a small amount of food, a water container, three knives, a spear, and a sword. From the other two, there's food, iodine, a small first-aid kit, and the thing that interests me most of all: the bow. I tug at the string as I hold it in my lap. I'm still having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that this belonged to someone else who is now dead. I feel invasive using this weapon for myself. But still, I'll need it, especially later in the Games when the number gets low. I'll need a way to defend myself.

River Dartmouth, 16, District 6

After Fiona left, Felix and I came dangerously close to splitting up ourselves, but we couldn't. We would still feel so vulnerable by ourselves. It's hard enough to be down to two. We mostly wandered aimlessly yesterday—I guess we reflected our being lost mentally by getting lost literally.

We're still walking, and we're starting to get hungry, but we haven't talked much. I think we both know to keep a halfhearted eye out for food, but we're not putting in nearly as much effort as we should be.

I snap out of my mental stupor when I hear something nearby. I freeze and throw my hand out to stop Felix. We stand frozen, listening, until the source of the noise reveals itself—the girl from 10.

We stand, sizing each other up, for maybe three long seconds, and then she attacks.

The girl is almost twice as skilled as we are, but we're a combined force. She and I are both fighting with a sword, but Felix only has a knife. I can't lash out as full-on as I'm capable of doing because I'm busy keeping an eye on Felix and fearing that Roxy will quickly change directions and take him out with one lunge. I have to do something. I focus, and when I see an opening, I lunge forward, clashing my sword against her with all my strength. She's forced to push back, freezing us both as we push against each other.

"Run!" I grunt.

Felix hesitates, then turns and flees. When he's out of sight, I tear my sword away from Roxy, causing her to stumble forward, and flee in the opposite direction. I can only hope she follows me and not Felix, since there's no way he can escape her with only a knife.

I have no idea where we are, so it's a complete shock to me when I see the willow trees up ahead. Hoping luck is on my side, I sprint on. Roxy is fast, but my legs are longer, and I've put a small amount of distance between us. I dive into the thick, low-hanging branches of the willows. Almost immediately, I lose my sense of direction. It's impossible to see more than a foot in front of me. I keep twisting and turning, hoping to throw her off. I run for as long as I can. When I feel myself almost run out of steam, I finally come to a stop for a second, listening closely for signs of anyone around me. Nothing. She's gone.

And so is Felix.

Felix Hendrix, 15, District 5

I didn't get to say goodbye. I had a whole day alone with River after Fiona left, not to mention the days before that, and I never fully thanked him. We never asked him to be our ally, and nothing was stopping him from letting us run straight into the Careers on that first day together. Instead, he helped us run away, and stayed beyond that, even though he didn't have to. He wasn't just a strategic ally; he was so nice to us, a true friend. And now, chances are, I'll never see him again.

That's it then. What's the point of worrying about friendships anyway? We're here to kill one another. And that's what I need to do. I start to run again.

I run blindly for what feels like hours, and suddenly, the girls from 6 and 9 are in front of me. The girl from 9 jumps up, drawing her small knife, seeming ready to fight. I can't show any more mercy. I thrust my knife forward.

But before it meets its target, the smaller girl from 6 is leaping in front of the other girl to block the blow, and she succeeds. The knife intended for the girl from 9 hits the girl from 6, who tumbles to the ground. The girl from 9 bends down as if to help, but there's nothing she can do. I grow numb as I watch the life of this small girl drain from her, because of me. My momentary trance of determination to kill everyone is gone, leaving just me, plain old Felix. A cannon fires. The girl and I stare at the body in silence, until rage like I've never seen fills the face of the girl from 9. The horror of what I let myself do is still keeping me numb. I do nothing as she lets out a roar, leaps forward, and stabs me.

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

I flinch as the second cannon fires. I have no way of knowing where this fighting is going on, so I'm forced to stay up in this tree and wait for things to clear up.

I don't have to wait for long, though. I lean back against the trunk and peer down as Sierra from 9 stumbles into view. I will her to run past, but to my horror, she drops to her knees directly below me. I'm not that high up either—maybe 10 or 15 feet.

She begins to scream. I look down again and see that she's holding out her hands, which have blood on them. "Look what you made me do!" she screams. "Are you happy?!" I can only assume she's speaking to the Capitol. "This is all you do. You say you're trying to keep peace in the country. Is this what you call peace? A little girl is dead. And I killed someone too. He was a good person before this too! _This_ is how you treat your people?"

She screams on about the corruption and wrongdoings of the Capitol. I can picture the Gamemakers in the control room frantically switching the cameras to another tribute to get her off air. Can't have her words sparking a rebellion now.

But it looks like they're doing something more. Sierra's words fade into sobs as I look down to see something all too familiar. A square in the trunk of the tree next to her has slid open, revealing a small dart ready to fire towards her. The same darts I had to face a few days ago. The dart turns and points straight at her. However, right as it's released, she falls forward in grief, causing the dart to fly over her without her even seeing it.

A second dart will get her for sure. There's no way they'll allow her to live after that little speech. Shame washes over me when I catch myself already planning to steal her supplies. If I were braver, I would hop down and say some words to honor her or something, because of course I completely support what she said. But if I want to live, I have to be a good little tribute and do what the Gamemakers want, which is to show my lack of support for Sierra and my undying love for the Capitol.

And suddenly, I know what I have to do. There's no way around it. If I don't do this, I'm allowing a rebel to live. I'm basically an accomplice.

Silently, I stretch an arrow back in my bow and peer down. She's still directly below me, hunched over in a ball. I release the arrow.

It drops and hits its target. I curl up and cover my ears and shut my eyes, but the damage is done. I hold my breath for the few minutes before I hear the muffled sound of a cannon. I slowly unblock my ears and open my eyes, but I refuse to look down until the hovercraft comes, and I look away until it's gone. Then I climb out of the tree and run.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

It's been a few hours since the three cannons fired, and the sun is definitely on its way down. The Careers will be back soon. I need to do this now.

I step out of the edge of the woods and into the clearing. Then adrenaline takes over, and I run.

I make it to the Cornucopia, and round the corner to peer inside the mouth. It's incredible how much supplies are in here. But I only need something simple. I frantically start rummaging through bags, doing my best not to move anything around. It takes maybe twenty terrifying minutes before I find what I'm looking for: a simple box of matches. I pull out three and then flee.

I don't know why I didn't come up with this plan earlier, but I have now. It's so simple, and I'm carrying it out tonight.

But then I realize it won't work. I need something else. I turn back to the clearing and am about to step out until I see Clara emerge from the woods across from me. I leap back under the cover of the woods and frantically climb a tree. I'll just have to hide up here, wait, and think.

Dark has almost fallen, and all the Careers are back now. But my plan still can't work. But then, a small silver parachute lands in my lap, and I open the small canister it carries. The scent of the liquid inside brings a smile to my face. _Duh. _This is exactly what I needed. I smile and wave up at the sky, hoping some camera will catch my thank-you to my sponsors.

I'm forced to wait a while longer as the Careers have their stupid campfire dinner and then mosey on into their wooden little shed. I wait another half hour or so until they have to be asleep. It's time.

I climb down and creep out to the shed, which luckily has no windows. The scariest part of this plan is that I have to go to the side with the door on it for this to work. But thankfully, the door is shut. I open the canister and splash the wall all over with the liquid—gasoline. Then I strike a match. It only takes one for the entire wall to swell up in flames. Then I turn and run.

Destiny Hartman, 16, District 1

I wake up to the blinding light and blistering heat of the fire that blazes up mere feet away from me. My cot is closest to the door, so as I scream to wake the others, I leap out of bed and dive outside. I run a few feet to a safe distance away, and then whirl around, praying the others will follow. Instead, I watch in horror as the flames engulf the doorway, the only way out. But then, Clara leaps through the flames with a yell and runs towards me. I barely acknowledge her, waiting for the others to come out too. The flames reach the roof and it caves in, collapsing on the two trapped inside. I can hear them both yelling. They're still alive. I turn to Clara for help, but she's not there. Then I see her running out of the Cornucopia, fire extinguisher in hand. She sprays the cabin down with a powerful force, and the flames slowly die out. And suddenly, there's silence.

Slowly, a large figure rises from the debris. Tison. He clambers over to us. I can't see him in the dark, but he must be covered in burns. Clara, ever resourceful, flicks on a flashlight she must have had on her. Cautiously, we make our way over to the wreckage that was our peaceful shed only five minutes ago. Clara moves the beam around until it finds a hunched figure. We roll it over, and what was once Jasmine's face is fully illuminated by the light.

I scream. What was once so smooth and perfect and beautiful is now a charred thing that's barely recognizable as a face. Clara moves forward and feels for a heartbeat. She searches for maybe twenty seconds, but then is stopped by a cannon. And then something in me snaps.

I signed up to be here. I watched my sisters die before me. I acted like we would all live forever. That body being lifted into the sky by a hovercraft could have been me. It could still be me in a matter of days. I was so blind. I feel like I've woken up from being hypnotized.

I flee into the woods, screeching all the way.

**_Whew! A lot of dying today. There are only 8 tributes left now! The next chapter will be from the point of view of our Capitol friend Devera as we watch the interviews for the family members of the top 8!_**

**_UPDATE: I've had a crazy week, and this coming week will probably be just as crazy, so next chapter will officially be up on the 21st or 22nd. Sorry for the wait, everything is just going crazy on the way to Christmas! See you in a week!_**


	15. Top 8 Interviews

**_I'm back! I know I said this would be up by December 22nd, but it's still the 22nd in like the Alaska time zone :p Also, sorry this is a pretty non-eventful chapter anyway because it's just the top 8 interviews, but I wanted to include them. I hope you're enjoying your holidays if you have them!_**

Devera Spring, 14, Capitol

We finally made a deal with our parents: they all watch the events at my house, while Charlene, Liliana, and I stay at Liliana's and have the house to ourselves.

The Hunger Games logo vanishes from the screen as it fades to Caesar Flickerman standing in the familiar town square of District 1. "Good morning, Panem!" he says, beaming at us. "As you all know, we are down to only eight tributes. That means it's time to talk to the families. And we're certainly starting strong! I'm here in District One, the only district that still has both of its tributes! And we're starting off with the Hartman family! Follow me!" He walks off the screen, and the shot fades to him ringing the doorbell of a fairly nice house. A blond-haired woman opens the door and smiles. "Oh, Caesar, what a surprise! Come on in!" Caesar turns and gives the camera a thumbs-up before following her inside.

He follows her to a living room, where a small man, a small brown-haired girl, and an older girl with red streaks in her hair sit perched on the couches. "Have a seat!" she says, gesturing. Caesar thanks her, sitting right in the middle.

"So, let's start off by introducing ourselves!" Caesar says. "I assume you two are Destiny's lovely mother and father?" They nod. He turns to the girls. "And who might you two be?"

"Um, I'm Charity, Destiny's sister," says the younger girl, staring into the camera nervously.

"And I'm Lila, Destiny's best friend," Lila says, staring into the camera as well and running her hands through her hair.

"Bet she couldn't wait to be on tv," Charlene says. I agree. She's clearly trying to convince her audience that she's the most beautiful girl in Panem.

"So, let's start from the beginning. Was Destiny's volunteering planned?" Caesar asks.

"No," her mother says. "She was supposed to wait until she was eighteen, just like her sisters. Our Destiny has always been full of surprises." She beams. Her teeth are very white.

"Ah, and that brings me to my next question. What have these past few years been like for you, with all these daughters competing in the Games?"

"We couldn't be prouder," her mom says. "Regardless of whether previous sisters win or lose, I think all four of our daughters have always planned to volunteer." She glances over at Charity and smiles.

Caesar turns to her. "Oh really? And would you agree? Will we be seeing you in the Games in a few years?"

"Uh…" she glances over at her parents nervously. Her mom smiles and nods reassuringly. "Um, you'll just have to wait and see."

"Ahh, full of surprises! I love it! Now, what can we expect from Destiny during the rest of these Games?"

There's a pause. Mrs. Hartman elbows her husband. "You take this one, dear," she says. He clears his throat and sits up straighter. "Uh, well, she's always been the top of her class, especially with sword fighting. Once she has to fight someone face to face who's able to put up a good fight, I think she'll really be able to show off her skills."

"Wonderful! I certainly look forward to it. Anything else we'd like to say?" Caesar asks.

"We're all rooting for you, Destiny!" Lila says. "After you left, a bunch of us got our hair streaked red like this to support you!" she says as she runs her hands through her hair again. At this, Charlene and I turn to stare at Liliana, who laughs and shrugs, pushing her new cherry-red hair over her shoulder.

"Ah, I love the team spirit!" Caesar says. "Thank you very much!" Everyone waves at the camera before it cuts to Caesar walking in the street again. "Up next, it's time for us to go a few blocks over and pay a visit to Tison Maxwell's friends and family!"

-0-

Tison's house is much duller than Destiny's. While Destiny's house had shiny light wood floors and white or tan furniture, the outside walls of Tison's are made of rough grey wood with dull chairs on the porch. This is where Caesar stands to make room for all of Tison's people, who introduce themselves as his parents, his instructors, and his classmates.

His parents are both big and muscular, which you would expect. His dad is aggressive and gruff, while his mom is more solemn and gives mostly one-word answers. His instructors explain how their academy is the most revered in all of District 1 and is located walking distance from the town square, and families from all over the district send their kids to be taught there in the hopes that they'll one day be chosen for the Games.

"And was Destiny a classmate of his?" Caesar asks.

Another boy shakes his head. "She went to an all girls' school, I think."

"Ah, so your academy has both boys and girls?"

The boy nods. "The head instructor picks out one boy and one girl from the eighteen year olds, and they're supposed to volunteer. Everyone else is supposed to back off and respect that. Of course there are always a few people from other schools who try to volunteer anyway."

"Oh yeah, remember that blond girl from the reapings?" Charlene says. "I bet she was the girl from Tison's academy." I laugh. Guess Destiny didn't care.

"And do you still support your decision?" Caesar asks an instructor.

He nods. "Absolutely. He's on the path to win, and he will."

"Well, thank you very much! District One has been a pleasure to visit!" He gives a friendly wave while everyone else kind of awkwardly glares at him.

-0-

Caesar's in a street again, this time a darker one. A factory puffs out smoke in the distance.

"We've now moved on to District Two." He turns into a driveway. "And here's the home of Clara James!"

Like with Tison, the vibe from this family is kind of tense, but there's only three of them.

"Panem, please say hello to Mr. and Mrs. James…" each of them solemnly lifts a hand in a half-wave. "…and to Clara's older sister, Cassandra." She also nods solemnly at the camera. There's no questioning her relation to Clara; they have slightly different facial features or whatever, but they have the exact same thick, wavy red hair and tall, narrow frame.

"So, let's start with what I think is most interesting about Clara," Caesar says. "She has all the qualities of a volunteer tribute, so a lot of times I forget that she didn't actually volunteer. She was reaped. Why do you think she didn't volunteer, with skills like that?"

"I couldn't say," her father says. "Both of my daughters have always been by far the most skilled fighters of anyone they knew, and I expected them both to volunteer." It's hard to miss the look he shoots at Cassandra.

"Ah, but of course Cassandra here never volunteered. I'm sure we all would have remembered her," Caesar says, turning to her. "What's your story?"

She shrugs. "I was never interested in volunteering," she says. "I agreed to go to training for my father's sake because I thought that maybe I would change my mind by the time I was eighteen, but I never did. I let other people volunteer who wanted it more than I did."

Caesar nods. "So you just want what's best for your district?"

"I guess you could put it that way."

"Well, whether or not Clara is there by choice, I think she's still doing a fantastic job. What's it been like watching from home?"

"We're extremely proud," the mother says. "We always knew she had it in her to win, she just needed that extra push to get her into the Games in the first place. I guess luck was on our side on reaping day, and now she's proving herself, just like we always knew she could. No other tribute comes close to her."

"So it hasn't been worrying to watch her?"

"Not at all. We know she'll come out on top, just like she always does."

Caesar smiles. "Well, I'm sure if she could see this, she would be thrilled to know how confident her family is for her! Thank you very much! And best of luck to Clara!"

-0-

They don't show Caesar in the streets of District 3. It just cuts to him in Harmony's living room.

"Why don't they ever show the outside for this district?" Liliana whines. A lot of times they don't for any the non-career districts.

"They're probably gross," I say. "Why do you care whether we see their nasty factories or whatever they have?"

"True," she says. "I guess it doesn't really—OMP, that girl is so cute! It's like a mini Harmony!"

The little girl on screen definitely looks a lot like Harmony, with the same curly brown hair, wide eyes, and timid manner.

"Hello!" Caesar says. "Would you like to introduce yourself?" He leans over to her.

"Um… My name is Melody," she says quietly.

Caesar beams. "And how old are you?"

"Eight."

"And are you Harmony's little sister?" she nods. "And these must be your parents!" she nods again. The shot widens so we can see two mousy-haired people with glasses and extreme average-ness.

"Now, I have to ask. Considering your daughters are named Harmony and Melody, music must be big in your family. Am I right?"

The mother nods. "We're in the music industry. We help mix the music you all listen to."

Caesar's eyes widen. "What do you mean?"

"Well, there was a time when most music came from the voices and instruments of real people. Singers would record their voices and musicians would play their instruments and that was how you would get a song. There are still a few of those here and there, but now with the success and new abilities of technology and computers, we know it's much better to mix music. We just program different rhythms and chords and computerized voices and layer them together to produce that upbeat catchy stuff you Capitol people love." There's a light in her eyes; you can tell she's pretty passionate about her job.

"Wow! Any popular songs we would know that you've worked on?"

"The most successful one we helped work on was 'City Lights.'"

Liliana gasps. "I have that song! That is like, my favorite song! No way!"

"So your involvement in music influenced your naming choices?" Caesar asks, smiling.

The father nods. "Of course. It's a huge part of our life."

"So back to Harmony. Take us through what these past few weeks have been like for you."

The atmosphere in the room instantly changes. Both parents visibly tense up. "Um," the father begins. "It's been… difficult, as you can imagine. Harmony's a very smart girl, but we know she isn't a fighter. We're just hoping for a miracle," he says sadly. He looks over at his wife.

"And we're trying to do as much as we can to help," she continues. "The district keeps pitching in money to send for sponsor gifts, but we only have so much. If only we lived in the Capitol. They have the money to make a difference," she says tearfully.

Caesar nods sadly. "Well, it's up to everyone watching to decide which tribute to sponsor, and maybe a lot will choose Harmony! There's always hope!"

The parents nod. "We just want Harmony to come home," the mother says.

"And maybe she will," Caesar says. "Best of luck to you!"

-0-

Like Harmony, Fiona's parents and only sibling—her brother Calvin— are the only three people to speak for her.

"So, what was life like before all of this?" Caesar asks.

"About as normal as you could get," Calvin says. "Fiona and I were both just students at school."

"And do you think Fiona has changed since being reaped?"

The mother shakes her head. "We all think she's been completely true to herself. She's always been comfortable with the outdoors, and good at thinking on her feet."

"And what do you think of this whole alliance affair?"

"That's another thing that was true to her usual self. I think she proved to be a loyal friend, but in the end, she still relied on what was the smartest decision when it came to breaking up the alliance."

"Of course. And what were your thoughts yesterday with her district partner?"

"It was horrifying. Knowing that our daughter spent days on his side, even befriending him, and then to see him transform like that… We're just glad that hasn't happened to Fiona. And then his encounter with those two girls… We weren't sure he was dead until you came to do the interviews and said we were the only family you would be talking to. I guess that Sierra hit him hard. Just terrible. Her too."

"Ah yes, many tributes do succumb to the conditions of the Games, but I'm glad you seem to think Fiona has stayed true to herself. Here's to hoping she'll continue to do that through to the end! Thank you very much!"

-0-

I'm not ready for the next shot. It's of River's family, once again only two parents and a sibling, but this time, the sibling is a small girl who sits in her mother's lap. Her round, wide, bright blue eyes go between staring at Caesar, the camera, and her parents.

"Let's say hello to the Dartmouth family! And what is your name?" Caesar asks.

"Isabelle," she says shyly.

"And how old are you?"

"Three."

"Wow! What has it been like for you to watch your brother on television?"

"Um, well," the mother quickly cuts in, "We were very worried it would be difficult for her to understand, but she seems to be—"

"It's scary," Isabelle interrupts. "I don't like it. I miss my brother."

"Ah, but I'm sure you're sending him as much love and support as possible, right?"

"How can you send love? It's not a real thing! Well, like a thing you can hold or somethin'. I can only give love to River when he comes home. But Mommy said that he might not and I have to be brave."

"And what tactics have you been using to be brave?"

"You know, I think that's enough," the mother suddenly interjects. "It's time for Isabelle to go play." She rises and leaves the room, carrying Isabelle with her.

"You Capitol people should be ashamed," the father says coldly. "Throwing questions at a child like that. She's going through enough as it is."

"Er, well, I'm glad to see that you all seem to be very supportive of River. Best of luck to you!" Caesar says before quickly turning and waving to the camera, cutting off the brief interview.

-0-

_Another _tribute with just two parents and a sibling, this time a young boy.

"Let's give a warm hello to the Jeffersons, Phoenix's parents and brother!" Caesar says. "Now tell me, did you know that's Phoenix's timidity during the week before the Games was an act all along? Or were you just as fooled as the rest of us?"

"Phoenix has always been a quiet girl, but not in a fearful, more of a serious way," her father says. "We didn't think she would be that fearful, so we suspected something was off, but then again, there's no real way of knowing how a kid's gonna react to being put in the Games until they get there."

"But she's certainly proved herself," Caesar says. "She's been one of the strongest tributes, as well as the most surprising. What's that like?"

"Well of course no one wants to see their child killing others," the mother says. "But I guess we prefer it to the alternative."

"And what do you mean by the alternative?"

It's hard to miss the mother almost rolling her eyes. "Her not fighting for herself and then, um, dying."

Caesar turns to the kid. "And you must be Phoenix's brother," he says. "Can you tell us your name and age?"

"I'm Finch, and I'm nine," he says.

"Ah, both children named after birds?"

"We had Phoenix at a fairly young age," the mother says. "We picked out the names Phoenix and Finch when we first had Phoenix, and even though they're a little strange, we didn't want to change it once Finch arrived."

"I see. Now, tell me about the last thing we saw, the fire. What was that like to watch at home?"

"Well every time she leaves the shelter of a tree, it's terrifying," the father says. "But the fire was a smart move, especially since she wasn't hurt in the process. No one else seems to be doing anything to target the strongest tributes, so she finally found a way to move things forward. And now that group seems to be broken up."

"So it seems. Any final words?"

The mother shakes her head. "I think everyone can probably imagine how we feel, and how of course we want our daughter to come home. If we could tell her anything… I don't know. I guess just to stay strong, but I think that's what she's doing."

"I agree. Thank you very much!"

-0-

The final interview is in District 10, for Roxy. Her crowd is more like Tison's, with her parents in front and a small group of instructors and classmates behind them. They stand in what looks like the center of a round track with a few small buildings behind them.

"As you can see, we're not at Roxy's house. We're at more of her home away from home, her school." Caesar turns to the crowd. "Who can tell me what Roxy was like as a classmate?"

"Brutal," one girl says. "This is a military training school, so most of us will probably become Peacekeepers. Obviously everyone here is pretty tough, but she was always one of the toughest."

"Yeah," says a different boy. "When she got reaped, I was like, 'oh hey, District Ten could win this year.'" The other kids around him nod.

"Instructors, would you agree?" They just nod stiffly.

"And what about our lovely parents?" Caesar says, turning to them. "What have your thoughts been?"

"The Games are dangerous, but we know Roxy has the experience it takes to win," says the mother, a wrinkle-nosed woman with the same red hair as Roxy, but tied back in a bun.

"And were you surprised to see that she wasn't a part of the Career alliance?"

"Absolutely not. She wouldn't be able to work together with them in any way that would benefit her. She's always been able to accomplish the most on her own," says her father.

"And I'm sure she will continue to do so! She's one of the only tributes we've ever had who has had past experience and training, and I think that definitely makes her one to watch! Thank you very much!" He turns to the camera. "That concludes our final interview! Thank you again to all the friends and families. And without further ado, let's get right back into the Games! May the odds be ever in your favor!" The Hunger Games logo covers the screen, then fades to… a commercial break.

I glance over, wondering if Charlene and Liliana have anything to say, but then realize the ad on the screen is for a new store opening a few blocks away. Thoughts of the tributes and families fade away as I take in the beautiful new outfits about to be accessible to me. And then finally, the screen fades to black, and then once again lights up on the arena.

_**Ok, hopefully the week of me being lame is over :p a new chapter where actual things happen should be up either tomorrow or the next day!**_


	16. Day 7: Mushrooms

**_I really need to stop setting deadlines for myself that I can't keep. Anyway, here's the week-late chapter! Sorry a lot of the point of views are pretty short and uneventful, but I wanted to show where everyone was at. Happy 2014!_**

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

I still can't believe I actually did it. The Careers are gone. After they left, I took my pick of the supplies they left behind, and then finally set out for the rest of the arena. Weird how for other tributes, the Games have taken place in different parts of the forest. For me, they've just been something to observe from the top of a tree. Now we're a week in, and I'm seeing the rest of the arena for the first time.

Granted, it's not much to see—mostly a lot of trees. It's pretty nerve-wracking being out in the open instead of safe in the tree, but I knew I couldn't stay. Before, I was there for a reason: I was waiting for a chance to weaken the careers. But now that's done, so staying there now would just be hiding instead. There's no way the Gamemakers would allow that.

It's okay. I may not have been training for this my whole life, but I'm still pretty strong, and I'm in just about perfect physical condition—who knows if the others have been getting enough to eat. And I know I'm one of the smartest. Things are looking pretty good for me.

Destiny Hartman, 16, District 1

Running. Running through the night. Crashing into trees. Turning around. Stumbling to the ground. Getting up. Running more. Sunrise. Still moving. Still trying. Can't get away. Forgetting what I'm running from. Just can't get away.

Fiona Hayden, 15, District 5

I thought I could escape the guilt. I thought I made the right choice. That was before I saw Felix's name in the sky.

There's no way to escape it. I don't know how I thought I could. If I'd stayed, I would have felt guilty for being there when he died and not being able to save him. I'm guilty for leaving him. If I died, I would still feel like I was abandoning him. If I'd never made the alliance in the first place, I would feel guilty for not helping him when he asked for it.

And it's not just him. River's still alive. It's ongoing. Over and over I try to decide whether to find him again.

I can't. That's it. If I want to come out of this alive, the only solution is to stop thinking about either of them and start thinking about myself. Hopefully someone takes care of River so I don't have to, but I have a family and a district to get back to. No more being nice.

I would give some of my winner's money to Felix's family. I'm still a good person, right?

River Dartmouth, 16, District 6

Felix is dead, and it's all my fault. One minute we were together, and the next, I decided to let him run away. What was I thinking? What made me think that Roxy would chase me and not him? I could have protected him. Instead, I just let myself run, and then less than an hour later, I heard Felix's cannon. I'd hoped that maybe since there were two other cannons, Roxy had been killed too, but it was Sierra and Adrielle, my district partner. Two more innocent people.

So last night was really rough for me, remembering Adrielle's bright optimism on the train and Felix's cheerful disposition. I suppose this is the point in the Games where some tributes would become overcome with rage and lose themselves, but I won't let that happen. I can't let my family watch that happen, especially my little sister. I'm staying true to myself until the end.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

I can't believe I let that stupid kid get away. And then someone else got to kill him! That was MY KILL!

Whatever. I'm pretty sure I still have the highest kill number. At least, I hope so. But who knows. Ugh. I _hate_ how we don't get to see how people died. For strategy purposes, not because I would enjoy watching them. I'm not _that _corrupt.

I'm just hoping there's a feast soon. Then I can finally see everyone and what condition they're in, and hopefully bring the number on my kill list up.

Clara James, 17, District 2

After the fire, Destiny ran away, leaving just Tison and me. We kind of just gave each other a look of understanding and then went our separate ways. I think we both knew an alliance with just the two of us wouldn't last too long. At least we were on the same page until the end.

It's like a whole new chapter of the Games now. No more allies to work with, just me. It's definitely a lot more peaceful. I had been looking forward to this change, but it's a lot more lonely than I thought it would be. I don't really know what to do besides keep walking, stay on the lookout, and wait for more cannons so that I can finally go home.

Tison Maxwell, 18, District 1

So the big breakup's finally happened. You'd think by this point we'd be down to only the very strongest, but there are surprisingly a lot of weak ones left. Especially that girl Phoenix. She's probably just been hiding the whole time or something. But there's also Harmony, Fiona, and River. I was surprised any of them made it past the first day, let alone up to this point.

I also want to know who set our cabin on fire. There's no way it started on its own. For a while I thought maybe the Gamemakers did it, but I don't think so. If they wanted to mess with us, they'd send us a mutt to fight or something "entertaining" like that.

Not that it really matters who set the fire, but I can't help loathing them, obviously. It's not that I even mind being on my own, I just can't believe what a cowardly move that was. Waiting til we were all asleep and keeping a wall between us the entire time. I can't wait until more of these cowards are gone and I can get out of here to the heroic life I deserve.

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

Being on the ground is horrible and nerve-wracking, but I have to do it. Sleeping in a tree is one thing, but staying up there during the day will make the Gamemakers impatient. Hopefully if I come back and check my traps at night, but at least kind of walk around during the day, they'll leave me alone.

But other tributes won't. I'm reminded of this by the shuffling sound coming from behind a tree only feet away from me. Before I can do anything, Destiny from District 1 stumbles out from behind it and staggers forward, straight into me, knocking me over backwards as she falls forwards on top of me.

The Games have not been as good to her as I thought. This is certainly not the beautiful, confident girl I saw during interviews and training. Her once smooth, perfect hair is now a rumpled, tangled mess, complete with twigs sticking out of it. She's covered in scratches and bruises that she doesn't even seem to be aware of. But it seems like the damage hasn't only been on the outside—her wide eyes, once wide from being alert and almost curious, now just seem completely crazed.

I can't move as we stare right into each other's eyes, panting. Suddenly, she speaks.

"Ch…Charity." Her voice is soft and raspy, and her speech is so garbled I can barely understand what she's saying.

"Charity," she says again, a little more clearly this time. Charity?

Then I remember. During her live interview, she said she had a sister named Charity who was about my age and had brown hair.

Oh no. She doesn't think I'm… Does she?

"D… Don't do it Charity," she says breathlessly. "Don't come here."

I just stare at her, speechless.

"We thought we could… do it… but… it's different. We don't… We… We aren't…" She shakes her head. "It's too hard!" she says, her voice getting louder and clearer. "I was supposed to win but… She's dead now… And I might be too… It's scary… and I'm cold… And I'm… thirsty…" she trails off, her wild eyes looking around and not seeing.

"Um…" I start. She looks at me. "I uh… You're thirsty?"

She gives a half-nod as she starts to slump over. I roll out of the way and let her curl up on the ground.

"I'll um… I'll get you some water, ok?"

She just groans.

I take out an empty container and pour some of my water into it. As I screw the lid shut, I glance up to see a patch of mushrooms nearby. There's no mistaking them from training.

I look down at the shallow container in my hand. There are two ways that this could end. Maybe this pure water would be enough to revive Destiny, and bring her back to reality. Or…

But in the end, what choice do I really have? Can I really waste my resources curing one of the biggest threats here? And maybe she would be grateful enough to let me live, but not if it stopped her from winning.

It takes a few minutes to grind up the mushrooms into a flavorless mush. Then I put it in the water and shake it. It looks a little foggy, but innocent enough.

I turn back to Destiny, who hasn't moved. "Here," I say, bending down. "Um… Can you sit up?" Unable to believe what I'm doing, I kneel down and help her slowly sit up. She leans on me as she takes the canister with shaky hands and slowly drinks it all. She sighs.

"Better?" I ask.

She nods as she slumps over again, her head ending up in my lap. She stays like that for a few more seconds, until a cannon fires.

I somehow manage to avoid the reality of what I've done until I've scooted out from under her, stood up, and started running. I can't have been running for more than a minute when another cannon goes off. It makes me jump more than any previous cannon has.

I can't think about what I've just done. How I've just poisoned—no. I can't think about it. I run faster and faster. It will be dark soon anyway. I just need to get back to my traps, grab whatever squirrel I've caught, and just—

I skid to a stop as I reach my first trap. I didn't catch a squirrel. I caught a person.

Clara dangles from the tree, suspended by the rope around her neck like a noose.

I guess it's not impossible. I hid the trigger rope well enough that even the sharpest tribute wouldn't notice it if they were just walking at a normal speed. But I didn't think this could actually happen. This trap was meant for hanging animals.

I turn away and try to run again, but there's no stopping the rush of thoughts this time. I fall to the ground and curl up in a ball, sobbing.

I don't know what I'm feeling right now. In a way, it's fear of myself. I never thought I would be capable of something like this. Both kills were technically easy physically, but I never thought I would have the mental ability to go through with this. And now, two of the strongest tributes are gone because of me. Does that make me a threat?

No. I'm still just some small girl who's always been scared of loud noises and electric shocks. Who's never joined a sports team for fear of getting hurt. Who in a way has been using a strategy of not doing anything this entire time because I knew I could never actually win.

But maybe what's done is done. And maybe I actually can decide to win.

I pull myself together and sit up, gazing at the sky. A sky that will be showing their names before too long.

"Wiress," I whisper. I clear my throat. "I know you remember that plan I had. You said it probably wouldn't work, but I saw your expression. Can you send me what I need so I can go home? Please?"

_**I'm not gonna set a specific date for the next chapter because I'll end up missing it and feeling bad, so let's just say the next chapter will be up as soon as possible! Thanks for being patient and sticking with me!**_


	17. Beggars at the Feast

**_I'm back! It's looking like there will be a new chapter every Sunday night because I don't have time to write until the weekends. Anyway, it's finally time for a feast! Have fun!_**

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

It was a long night. I barely slept, and now, the sun's already starting to rise again. I'm barely awake when I hear that dreaded voice.

"Attention all tributes!"

It's Celia Sunshine.

"Congratulations to the six of you who remain. You all seem to be doing fairly well, but we're still going to treat you to a little feast. It starts in exactly three hours and will be right at the Cornucopia. Don't be late! May the odds be ever in your favor!"

We all seem to be doing fairly well, huh? So I guess no one's injured or starving to death or dehydrated and losing their mind after losing their alliance and seeing things and staggering through the woods and—

_Don't think about it._

There was a time when I would have avoided this feast. There's still no way I'm going to actually run out in the open and try to fight people, especially since I still have plenty of food anyway, but I need to be there and see what happens. Guess it's back to the old strategy of climbing a tree at the edge of the clearing and waiting.

I'm just about to start moving when the silver parachute comes down. I lunge for the small container attached to it and pull off the lid. I smile at the silver powder inside. Wiress pulled through for me.

River Dartmouth, 16, District 6

I start walking as soon as I hear the announcement. I'm in perfectly good condition at the moment, but I'm running low on food. And I know if I don't find some of these people now, I'll just have to fight them later on. And hopefully other people will direct their attention towards Tison or Roxy. I don't see why they would focus on me.

My heart is starting to pound. I'm not even at the clearing yet. There are still hours to go. But I know big things are coming today.

Tison Maxwell, 18, District 1

Previous tributes from my district would probably march right out into the clearing and wait for the feast to appear, but I'm not one of those tributes who are so cocky that they end up doing really stupid things. There's such a thing as long-distance weapons. No point in standing out in the open. As one of my instructors always used to say, there's a difference between being brave and being stubborn and unwilling to do the smart thing.

Looks like I don't have long to wait anyway. A table rises from the ground covered in what looks like a bunch of trays with dome-shaped covers over them, keeping them nice and warm for us. Ha. Well, here goes.

I pull out my sword and am about to walk out into the clearing, but I stop myself. What am I doing? I'm sure all the other tributes think of me as the biggest threat left. Who's gonna come out in the open with me standing there? I need to wait for them to come out first.

And I don't have long to wait—here comes the first one now.

Fiona Hayden, 15, District 5

After about one tense minute with no signs of life, I finally decide to make the first move. I take a deep breath and sprint for the table. Across the clearing from me, a tall figure emerges from the woods, running too. I run harder, pulling my knife from my belt as I reach the table and spin around to face whoever it is.

It's River. Of course.

He slows to a stop as he reaches the table, and we stare across it at each other in silence. I cautiously keep my knife held steady, braced to attack. I can tell I'm giving him wild, angry eyes. He looks confused and maybe a little hurt. He slowly cracks a shy smile, gives me a nod, and puts his hands up to show he means no harm before grabbing the handle of the cover in front of him and lifting it. A thick cloud of steam spirals upward, thinning to reveal a huge pile of basic chicken fingers. The smell is enough to drive my crazy. He picks one up and pops it in his mouth, wincing at the heat.

He's the same person. I can't believe that for a second there I was really considering attacking him. Or that I even suspected he would want to attack me.

Taking his cue, I quickly go along the table, removing all the covers to reveal meats, seafoods, fruits, vegetables, desserts, even a big pot of stew. Then I stop to stare at all of it sadly. It's a beautiful feast, but none of it is easy to store, and it's all foods that won't keep for very long. This isn't one of those grab-and-go feasts. I just have to eat while I'm here.

But I don't know if I'll get that chance. Roxy has just run out of the woods towards us. Well, towards me. I'm closer.

She stops across the table from me, that signature smirk of hers on her face. She stands there for another moment, then lunges across the table at me, trays of food falling to the ground as she knocks me over backwards and pins me down. I manage to keep a grip on my knife, but she pins down my wrist and raises her own knife. I'm helpless. She's about to bring it down when River appears behind her and yanks her off, brandishing his own knife. He glances at me. "Run!" he yells. I scramble to my feet and try to escape, but not before I hear River's scream. It's all I can do not to turn around. I don't need to see this. I can't help him. I can't.

I've almost reached the woods when the cannon fires. I turn around to see Roxy standing triumphantly over his fallen figure.

I really just let that happen. First Simon, then Felix, now River… And I was going to attack him. And instead he died trying to save me.

I run to the woods. I step into the trees. Someone is there waiting for me.

Tison.

There's no point in resisting.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

The second cannon fires. No time to think about who it was. The feast is still going.

Tison comes running out of the woods. Hm. There's no guaranteeing I can beat him one-on-one. When he's still a short distance away, I hurl a knife at him, but he dodges it. Shoot.

I'm still trying to figure out what to do next when Phoenix comes running around the Cornucopia. Before I can see what she has in her hands, she puts whatever it is to her lips and blows. A dart shoots out of it and straight into Tison's neck. He immediately falls to the ground as his cannon fires. Huh. Well done.

Phoenix and I face each other over the table. She's no match for me. I draw another knife, but suddenly, she upends the giant pot of piping-hot soup and splashes it onto me. I screech and stumble backwards as she scoops some fruit and slabs of meat into an open bag and takes off. Ugh. Whatever. I quickly shuffle through one of my bags and find some type of generic balm and a towel. I get the soup off me and apply the balm. It cools my skin. Not that these are real burns or anything, but can't be taking any chances.

I stand up, popping bite-size pieces of food in my mouth and waiting, but no one else comes. In fact, the only other person left to come would be either Fiona again or Harmony, depending on whose cannon that was earlier, but I don't think either of them would come with me standing here. Which means I get this feast all to myself. Looks like tonight, I get to feel completely full for what feels like the first time in forever.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

Darkness finally settles and the anthem begins to play. Once again, I gaze up at the sky for another night. Tison from District 1, Fiona from 5, and River from 6. And suddenly, there are only three of us left: me, Roxy, Harmony.

How are we gonna finish this? Harmony and I are both probably going to want to find a new plan that involves killing indirectly. Roxy will be trying to find us, but we'll refuse to be found. But if she ever did find us…

My thoughts are interrupted by another boom. _What?_

The final two. The _final two? _And the anthem already played, so there's no way of knowing who it was until tomorrow night. Then it hits me that maybe there will be no anthem tomorrow night. In twenty-four hours, the winner will most likely already have been decided. It's enough to set my heart racing.

So what do I do tomorrow? I was just thinking about how I could never stand a chance against Roxy, but maybe I could. Honestly, I kind of hope it is Roxy. Then at least I won't feel as bad about having to fight her. If I had to fight Harmony, I don't know how either of us would be able to do it.

But no matter who it is, I guess tomorrow morning I'll go to the Cornucopia and wait. Whoever it is will be smart enough to know to find me there.

_**There's suddenly only two chapters left! The winner will be decided next chapter and then there will be one more epilogue/what-happens-to-the-winner chapter. See you next week!**_


	18. Day 9: The Final Battle

_**This is probably the most important chapter in this story, but somehow, it also ended up being the shortest. Anyway, here's what you've been waiting for: the final battle! And then the final chapter will be up next weekend.**_

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

It worked. It actually worked.

At least I hope it did.

After the feast last night, I finally got to put my plan into action. The sponsor gift was gunpowder. I knew I had to wait until right after the anthem so they wouldn't know what had happened, and I had to do it quickly before they fell asleep. I also knew I only had one chance. This stuff is expensive, and it's not like you can explode something more than once. But I _also_ knew that Wiress would have been smart enough to send me a powder made of the exact formula I needed. So keeping my trust for Wiress in mind, I put the powder in a small sac, stuck a long string into the entrance of the sac, lit the end of the string, and ran.

The explosion was perfect. I didn't see I big flash of light through the trees, but the noise it made sounded almost exactly like the cannons.

So yes, there are still three of us left. And yes, only one of us knows that.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

After the sun rose, I waited around for a while, and then slowly started making my way towards the Cornucopia. I'm taking my time because I'm still waiting for something.

I'm just about to stop and look up at the sky and start making another whiny speech about how I need my gift _right now,_ but I see the parachute falling towards me before I even have the chance to open my mouth. Perfect timing.

I tear the lid off the box and slide the whip out. Finally. It's not the most unique weapon, especially for a District 10 tribute—on the farm, I had to use one all the time to drive the livestock, and that's why I'm so good with them. They've been used before in the Games. But that doesn't make them any less effective.

Coiling the whip into a loop and keeping a firm grip on the handle, ready to unfurl it at any second, I start off again for the Cornucopia. Here I come.

Phoenix Jefferson, 17, District 8

Once again, I'm waiting at the edge of the clearing. I thought I might be paralyzed with fear or whatever, but somehow I've managed not to think about the consequences today will bring. I'm just ready to get this over with, whatever "this" may end up being.

But I'm still not stupid. I can't just stride out into the clearing and wait to get ambushed. And I'm sure whoever else is left is thinking the same thing, so how are we supposed to—oh, never mind. Here comes Roxy striding out of the woods across from me.

What do I do now? She'll still see me coming. But all she has with her is a whip. She must have just dropped her bags and other weapons somewhere. So unless she has some throwing knifes hidden in a pocket or something, she can't hurt me until I get close.

Here I go.

Taking a deep breath, I draw out my sword and step out of the trees. She immediately turns to face me and grins.

"So it's you," I say, still walking.

She laughs. "Of course it's me. Who else could it have been?"

"Well I thought after that cannon last night you might finally be gone."

She frowns and hesitates for a second. "But… What, you think that little kid stood a chance against me? That she'd make it farther than me?" She starts to unwind the whip. "Looks I've got people underestimating me until the end."

"So what did you do to her?" I ask. _Why would I ask that?_ I don't want to know.

She shrugs. "Killed her, of course. She tried to sneak up on me while the anthem was playing, but I pinned her. Then of course she starts crying, saying District Three needs her and _please don't kill me…_ Like hello? Did she forget where she was? And what she had been trying to do like three seconds before? What a little hypocrite."

We've been circling each other for a good minute now. I'm getting uneasy.

"She put up a good fight, but she was never a killer. Only the real killers will make it in the end." She unwinds the whip all the way. The tip strikes the ground. "Right?"

In response, I lunge towards her, thrusting the sword forward.

She's ready for me. She leaps out of the way and lashes the whip at me, catching me on the arm and creating a small gash. I try not to wince, since it probably won't be the only one. I leap forward again, and she dodges again, looping the end of the whip around my ankle and yanking my feet out from under me. I crash to the ground, but thrust my sword upwards, feeling contact. She leaps back, shrieking, taking weight off her newly wounded leg.

I scramble to my feet and lunge again. This time, I'm about to cut into her arm, but before I can, her whip hits my forehead and I stagger back, only grazing her arm as blood runs down my face.

Before I can get myself together, she lashes the whip forward and loops it around the wrist of my right hand, the hand holding the sword. She pulls and pulls until my fingers grow weak, and I have no choice but to drop the sword. I jump forward and punch her as hard as I can with my left hand. Her nose begins to bleed. Shaking her head, she quickly unravels the whip from my wrist and flings it around my neck.

I can't breathe. She tightens it more and more, and I sink to my knees, pulling helplessly at the weapon around my neck. It's hopeless.

I refuse to let her see me feel defeated. I glare up at her with as much determination as I can muster before the black appears at the edges of my vision, and then finally closes in.

Roxy Benvolio, 15, District 10

She slumps to the ground as the final cannon fires. I know it's stupid with my wounded leg and stuff, but I somehow manage to climb on top of the Cornucopia.

Ha! What a bunch of idiots! Especially this last girl. I could see the fear in her eyes when I told her that stupid lie about mercilessly killing the District 3 girl. Of course I didn't! That loser died on her own. But this girl still believed me. I start to laugh.

My slow laughter grows louder and louder. I'm losing it. I curl up in a ball on top of the Cornucopia and laugh and laugh and laugh. I laugh until I start to wonder where my helicopter is. Still snickering, I get up and gaze at the sky, waiting. I turn around. Why haven't they come yet? And who's that running out of the woods towards me? And what's that object flying at my head?

The connection barely has time to form in my head before the arrows reaches its target, and I fall.

Harmony Goldman, 14, District 3

My arrow meets its target, and Roxy falls off the Cornucopia as her cannon fires.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I am pleased to present the victor of the Fifty-Seventh Hunger Games, Harmony Goldman!"

At least I think that's what she says. I'm having trouble hearing. It's like my ears are ringing and everything is underwater.

The hovercraft comes, lowers a ladder, and acts like it's letting me leave this all behind.


End file.
